Two Worlds, One Dragonrider
by Nocte Furorem
Summary: Hiccup gets blown out of the sky over Berk and wakes up in another world where he must learn his place. Is there a dragon in his future? Slightly A/U. Chapter 35 is up. Please leave a review after reading. Thanks.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1 – Struck by Lightning**

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><p><em>AN_: _This is an idea I've had brewing for a while now. How to combine characters from one of my favorite movies (HTTYD) with characters from one of my favorite book series (DRoP). I think I've found a solution, but I had to arrange the "death" of one of the major characters, so you HAVE been warned. As always, thanks for reading and PLEASE leave a review. Thanks._**  
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_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p><em>This is Berk. It snows nine months of the year and hails the other three. Any food that grows here is tough and tasteless, the people even more so. The only up sides are the pets. While other places have ponies and parrots we have...<em>

_DRAGONS!_

Winters in Berk are hard, but the blizzards this past winter were especially tough. With the stored food nearly gone, everyone pitched in to resupply the village. Even the dragons were contributing to the resupply efforts, bringing back freshly killed deer from nearby islands. Hiccup and Toothless followed a group of dragons flying South and confirmed there was indeed a large population of deer on several uninhabited islands to the South of Berk. After returning home and reporting to his father about his discovery, Hiccup volunteered himself and the dragonriders to lead a hunting expedition to the islands. Upon arriving they decided to split up into teams, each team will pick an island and hunt there. That way they could cover more territory and not have so many dragons in one place spook all the deer.

Two days later, Hiccup and Astrid were on their way back home after a successful hunt. Strapped to the back of Toothless and Astrid's Nadder, Spike were the carcasses of two large deer the dragons killed that morning. Both Hiccup and Astrid had full packs of camping supplies and salted deer meat strapped to their backs. Hiccup had Toothless fly a bit slower to compensate for the extra weight and to reduce the stress on Spike since he had smaller wings.

"Let's take it slow and easy, alright bud? We've got a long way to go and we've got a pretty heavy load here. You doing okay there, buddy?" Hiccup asked while leaning forward. Toothless turned his head sideways to look Hiccup in the eye and grunted once as if he was saying, _"No problem"._

Hiccup looked across at Astrid and Spike and it looked like they were doing okay. _"No problems with them so far, Spike is still breathing with his mouth closed"_ Hiccup thought to himself. Nadders were excellent fliers but had less wing size than Night Furies. If they get tired they start panting like dogs, so Hiccup had to watch out for that since he and Toothless were the ones setting the pace.

"How are you doing over there, Astrid?"

"We're fine" she shouted back. "We could go a little faster. I'm sure Spike has a little more speed in him." Astrid leaned forward and scratched his neck scales and Spike crooned back at her in appreciation.

"I'm pretty sure he does, but we've got a lot of open water to cross and don't forget the extra weight he's carrying."

"I haven't forgotten, I just think we could go faster is all I'm saying."

Hiccup shouted back; "We can do dragon races when we get home, Astrid. Let's just try to get there without straining ourselves or our dragons, okay?"

Astrid sank a little lower in her saddle but shouted back, "Okay". Hiccup could tell she wasn't happy.

"Look, Astrid, we've never had to fly this far with a load like this. Once we get back and get the dragons unloaded, we'll race you around the island. How's that sound?"

Astrid immediately brightened up at that. "You're on, dragon boy!" she shouted back.

Hiccup leaned forward and spoke to Toothless, "You hear that buddy? Astrid and Spike want to race when we get back, so save a little strength for it. You've got a reputation to uphold and I wouldn't want to see you lose a race because you were tired." Toothless just rolled his eyes at him. Hiccup laughed and scratched his neck.

o0o0o0o

By Hiccup's reckoning, they were three quarters the way back to Berk. Toothless was doing fine, but Hiccup could see that Spike was getting a little tired. He was still breathing through his nose, but he was spacing his wingbeats out a little more trying to save energy. He was still able to keep up with Toothless, but the constant up and down motion from delaying his wingbeats probably made an uncomfortable flight for Astrid.

Hiccup was also worried about the ominous looking storm clouds ahead that stretched across their path. It looked to be a fairly large storm, so there was little chance of flying around it. Hiccup thought about it for a minute and shouted across to Astrid.

"Listen, Astrid, we don't have a lot of options here. I know Spike is a bit tired from flying so far with such a load, and Toothless is not much better, so we can't go back to the island we came from. We have to try and make it through this storm, Berk is just on the other side of it. If we have to, dump the deer carcasses, we can always go back and get some more. We have to try and save ourselves and our dragons. Are you with me?"

"I'm with you, Hiccup" Astrid shouted back.

Hiccup leaned forward and made himself flat against Toothless's back to reduce wind resistance. He said to him; "It's up to you now, buddy. Bring us all home." Toothless looked back at Hiccup and gave a single bark in reply before flying into the storm.

At first it didn't seem so bad. Sure, there was the wind buffeting them around and the rain stung a bit, but they were still flying straight. They could start to see some of the rocks that form the barrier islands around Berk, so Hiccup knew they were close. It was then that the storm unleashed its full fury. Howling winds nearly tore Hiccup and Astrid from the backs of their dragons. Both Toothless and Spike roared in pain and frustration as the wind nearly wrenched their wings out of their sockets. Hiccup had Toothless turn with the wind and motioned for Astrid and Spike to do the same. Going with the wind they were moving _away _from Berk, but the flying was easier.

Hiccup shouted across to Astrid; "We can't fly straight into Berk, the winds are too strong."

"Then how are we going to get back?" Astrid shouted back.

"We tack. Remember sailing lessons?" Every child on Berk was taught at an early age how to sail.

"Of course, why didn't I think of that before?"

Hiccup smiled and shouted back; "I'm sure you would have thought of it eventually."

Astrid smiled, but immediately sobered; "What do we do about the deer?"

"Lose them!" he shouted back.

Astrid drew her belt knife and hesitated a moment before cutting the ropes holding the carcasses to Spike. When the bodies slid off his back to splash into the water below, Spike almost shook in relief.

Hiccup also cut the ropes holding the deer carcasses to Toothless, but didn't ditch his backpack. One reason was that his journal was packed away in there and didn't want to lose it. Another reason was that his safety harness was over the backpack straps and he would have to take the harness off to get to it. With the winds blowing around the way they were there was zero chance of that happening.

When he was done, Hiccup leaned forward and spoke to Toothless; "Okay, buddy, we can't fly straight home, we'll have to take the winds at an angle. It would take longer but we'll get there eventually. So you just keep us flying and I'll steer us there, okay?" Toothless looked back at Hiccup, laid one of his ear lobes on his hand, and grunted in reply. Hiccup adjusted the pedals to steer Toothless and said; "Alright, let's go!"

Once they turned at an angle to the wind, it tore at both dragons and riders, but they were able to manage it. Hiccup had Toothless take the lead in each turn so that Spike and Astrid would stay in the lee of Toothless's wings. They were making some progress now and some of the outer islands were closer each time they made a turn. On their sixth turn Astrid shouted that she saw something ahead of them.

"What is it?" Hiccup shouted back.

"I think it's a boat."

"What idiot would take a boat out in a storm like this?" Hiccup shouted to Astrid.

She shouted back; "Whoever it is they probably went out in good weather and the storm blew in on them unexpectedly. Now they can't get back. Hiccup, whoever it is, we have to help them!"

Hiccup sighed to himself and said quietly; "I suppose you're right" then a bit louder he said; "Alright, let's go get them!" and steered Toothless to intercept them.

They had to tack a few times to reach the boat and when they got there they noticed two things. One thing was that the mast snapped off at the waterline and the boat was taking on water rapidly. Two was that there was only one person in the boat. Hiccup circled closer to try to see who it was. He sucked in a breath when he noticed it was Snotlout! _"What the Hel is Snotlout doing out in a boat?" _Hiccup thought to himself. Then he remembered, Snotlout didn't have any dragonriding duties at the moment because his Nightmare, Fireworm was tending her egg and wasn't flying. _"So, he was doing his part to help out the village. That's nice, now we'll have to rescue him and endanger ourselves in the process. Just another occupational hazard for a Viking!"_

Hiccup steered Toothless closer so he could shout down to Snotlout. When he was close enough so he could be heard over the wind he told him; "Snotlout, stand on the bow and hold your arms up. Toothless and I will come around and when he does grab on to his legs. We'll carry you to shore." Snotlout gave the thumbs up and moved to the bow. He stood there with his arms outstretched and waited for Toothless to come around. Hiccup waited until the boat started to rise on one of the waves before he had Toothless descend. When the boat reached the crest of a wave, Toothless dove toward the boat and caught Snotlout in his back claws. Hiccup asked; "Did you get him?" Toothless ducked his head down so he could see his back legs and saw Snotlout smiling at him. Toothless gave a gummy smile back.

"Snotlout, are you okay?" Hiccup shouted down.

"Yeah, I'm here. Just get me to shore, okay?" came the reply.

"Just hang on, we'll get you there." Hiccup leaned toward Toothless's ear and said; "Alright, buddy, let's go home."

Toothless turned in the direction of Berk, but the winds continued to blow from that direction. Hiccup adjusted the pedals so that they could continue to tack toward the island. They were now within sight of the main island, a few more tacks and they'll be home! Hiccup stroked Toothless's neck for encouragement. "Almost there, buddy" he said to him.

Hiccup was starting to feel they were going to make it home when the storm turned really ugly. Before it was just wind and rain, now lightning started flashing all around them. Hiccup groaned to himself; _"Great, just great. What else could go wrong?"_ His shoulders drooped when he looked back to see how Astrid and Spike were doing. Spike was working hard to stay airborne now. He was panting heavily and every wingstroke seemed to take a lot of effort. Astrid kept encouraging him, that seemed to be the only thing keeping him going.

Hiccup scanned the shoreline ahead of him trying to find some shelter. There! A cave with a small beach in front of it. It looked large enough for two dragons and three humans. Perfect! Hiccup pointed it out to Astrid and angled toward the beach.

Astrid was looking directly at Hiccup and Toothless when disaster struck. Toothless was still over the water and descending toward the beach when a bolt of lightning smashed into Toothless and Hiccup, enveloping them in a blinding white light. Astrid screamed and Spike roared in pain from the intensity of the flash. She could hear Snotlout scream in fear as he fell to the water. A small part of Astrid's conscious mind was saying that he would be okay, because Toothless was low to the water and slowing down for a landing, but the major part of her thoughts were toward Hiccup and Toothless. _"Are they okay? What the Hel just happened?" _Blinking back tears, Astrid tried clearing her vision while Spike shook his head to try and clear his.

Once Astrid's vision was clear enough to see around her, she had Spike descend towards the beach. She looked around desperately for any sign of Hiccup and Toothless. She saw Snotlout swimming toward shore and waved to him. At least he was okay. As she neared the beach, she could see a part of Toothless's tail sticking out of the water. He was on his back with his tail pointed toward the beach. Astrid nearly panicked when she saw this, because if Hiccup was still in the saddle he would be pinned under Toothless and also be underwater. She had to act fast if she was going to do anything.

She directed Spike to land on the beach and instead of allowing him to collapse from exhaustion, she pleaded with him to help her pull Toothless from the water. If it was any dragon other than Toothless, Spike would have ignored her, but all the dragons owed Toothless and Hiccup a debt of gratitude for freeing them from the influence of the Red Death. He bit into the base of Toothless's tail to get a grip and started pulling. Astrid was a little worried when she saw this, not because Toothless would have Spike's toothmarks on him for the rest of his life, but because there was absolutely no reaction at all from Toothless. Astrid thought; _"If someone bit ME like that I'd sure be reacting in SOME way. Something must be seriously wrong."_

Astrid was standing by Spike's head offering encouragement to him. She didn't see the front part of Toothless when Spike pulled it clear of the water. Snotlout was wading through the surf toward shore and could see everything. When he did, he dropped to his knees in shock. He was still staring open mouthed at the sight of Toothless when Astrid came around to see. He came off his knees instantly and intercepted Astrid before she came around Toothless's outstretched wing.

"Let me go Snotlout! I have to help him! I have to know if Hiccup is alright!" Astrid screamed at him.

"Astrid, there's nothing you can do for them! Trust me, you don't want to see this!" Snotlout looked like he was fighting to keep from getting sick. However, Astrid was too hysterical to notice.

"Snotlout, I said... LET. ME. GO."

Snotlout has seen that look in Astrid's eyes before and didn't want to be on the receiving end of her wrath. With a final bow of his head and a muttered "I did try to warn you", Snotlout released his grip on her arms. Astrid gave him a questioning look and then walked around Toothless's wing to see what Snotlout was talking about. What she saw made her recoil in horror.

"No, Oh gods, no. No, no, no, no. Oh gods, this can't be happening. This is not happening. Hiccup has to be okay. He had to have been thrown clear somehow. He's somewhere..out...in...the..."

Astrid sank to her knees in the sand. She looked again at the ruin that once was a proud Night Fury and realized that Hiccup was still in the saddle when the lightning bolt struck.

Everything forward of Toothless's front legs, including his head, neck, saddle, and rider were completely and utterly obliterated.

Hiccup and Toothless were gone.


	2. Chapter 2 Beached

**Chapter 2 – Beached**

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><p><em><strong>All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.<strong>_

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><p>Hiccup slowly regained consciousness under a blazing sun. His first thought was; "<em>Am I dead?<em>" He was soaking wet and had a splitting headache. His second thought was; "_I must be alive, I hurt too much to be dead_". Hiccup pulled himself into a sitting position, groaning as he did so. He crossed his arms over his knees and gently laid his aching head on them.

Once his headache subsided, Hiccup shaded his eyes until they could adjust to the brighter sunlight. When his eyes were used to the brightness, Hiccup looked around to try and figure out where he was and saw that he was lying just at the edge of the water.

"_Okay, I'm on a beach. That sounds about right." _He looked around for the cave, but there were only trees at the edge of the sand. _"That's odd, how did we get on a different beach?" _He also noticed the weather was much warmer than Berk and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. _"How long was I out? Did the storm dissipate that quickly? This is getting weirder by the moment. It was just turning spring when we left Berk, how could it be summer already?" _

Hiccup felt the need to explore a bit more to try and find some answers. He started to get to his feet, but immediately fell flat on his face. He looked back at his legs and noticed they were tangled in the straps of Toothless's saddle. Hiccup rolled over to untangle his legs and noticed the burned edges of the straps. _"How the Hel did THIS happen?"_ Hiccup thought. Then he remembered the storm and how the lightning bolts were striking closer and closer. _"We must have been hit by lightning. That would explain the burned straps but NOT how I wound up in one piece on a strange beach with my dragon nowhere in sight!" _Hiccup looked around desperately for any tracks that Toothless may have left behind if he crawled out of the water. There were none to be seen.

"TOOTHLESS!" Hiccup shouted out to the surrounding woods, hoping that Toothless was just beyond the trees. The only sound coming from the woods was the chirping of insects and the wind through the branches.

Hiccup faced the open ocean and tried again. "TOOTHLESS!" There was no answering roar of a Night Fury. The only sounds that reached Hiccup's ears were the gentle lapping of the waves on the shore.

Hiccup rummaged through his backpack and took out the artificial foot he made over the winter and attached it to the bottom of his fake leg. He left the saddle where he was standing and walked up the beach several hundred yards to see if there were any tracks coming out of the water. When he found none, he reversed direction and searched the opposite end of the beach with still no sign of Toothless. Hiccup was starting to fear the worst, but he refused to give up just yet. Returning to the saddle, he laid it out to see if he could figure out just where the lightning bolt hit. When it was completely laid out, Hiccup just stared at it in shock.

Hiccup initially thought the straps were burned off, but looking at them now he could see that they were cut by something extremely hot, as if someone took a white-hot blade to cut them. The back part of the saddle where Hiccup sat was also cut off. He wasn't affected because he was leaning forward to streamline himself so Toothless could fly easier. The pedals were intact, but the metal rings that went around the upper part of Toothless's legs and made the framework to hold the pedals in place were cut away as well. The cuts were just as clean as the ones on the leather straps. _"Now what the Hel could __cut metal just as quickly, easily, and cleanly as leather and why didn't it affect me?" _Hiccup thought.

Hiccup took out his sketchbook and did a quick sketch of the front part of Toothless from memory. He then added the saddle, harness, and all the components of Toothless's flying rig. He then drew himself as if he was flying on Toothless's back and remembered to draw himself leaning forward in the saddle. He then made marks where the saddle and straps were cut and included the angle of the cuts on each one. When the drawing was done, Hiccup looked at it for a minute and thought; _"That's weird, all the angles of the cuts suggest that something circular went through them. And if it went through leather and metal like it was nothing, then how did it affect Tooth...no. Oh, no!"_

Hiccup dropped his sketchbook in the sand and sank to his knees. Great teardrops splashed onto his leggings when he realized that Toothless would never be coming out of the water.

o0o0o0o

It was late afternoon when Hiccup finished his task. Standing up and brushing the dirt from his legs, he looked at the small memorial he built for Toothless. There was a small grave that contained the only thing remaining that was essentially Toothless, his saddle. Hiccup cleared his throat.

"Well, buddy, I hope you like it. I tried to pick a spot with a nice view." Hiccup had to stop to choke down a sob. "I'm sorry I couldn't get you through this, bud. I'm sorry I shot you down last year, but I'm not sorry about the good times we've had. If I didn't shoot you down and injured your tail, we'd still be at war and you'd still be under the influence of the Red Death. We'd have never met and learned to trust each other and eventually become friends. You're the best friend I've ever had, Toothless. If I ever get to meet another dragon and bond with it, even if it is another Night Fury, I would never feel the same as I feel about you. I miss you already buddy, and I hope you're happy wherever you are."

Hiccup squatted down to place a hand on a large rock marking the gravesite. After bowing his head in farewell, he picked up his backpack, turned around, and walked away without looking back.

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><p><em>AN_: _Hi, all. Short chapter, but I wanted to keep events separate. I should have more in a few days_. _As always, please leave a review after reading_. _Thanks._


	3. Chapter 3 Say Hello To My Little Friend

**Chapter 3 – Say Hello To My Little Friend**

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><p><em><strong>All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey<strong>_

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><p>Hiccup stayed as close to the beach as he could. He wanted to use it as a reference as he made his way through this unfamiliar land. He looked to his left as the sun was sinking lower over the water and thought; <em>"So, it looks like I'm heading North. I guess it's as good a direction as any". <em>

He started looking for a place to set up camp for the night. He walked toward some seaside cliffs, hoping to find an overhang or a small cave for protection from the elements. He chose a small alcove at the base of the cliffs that was well above the high tide mark. Taking off his backpack and leaving it there, he walked down the beach gathering firewood. When he had a large enough stack, he went back to the alcove and built a small fire.

As he ate his dinner of salted deer meat, Hiccup stared into the fire and tried to analyze his situation. _"Okay, I'm in a strange land that's not Berk, that much is certain". _He scratched his chin. "_What I don't understand is how the Hel did I wind up in a land far to the South of Berk? The weather alone tells me I'm much further South than I've ever been on a boat or flying on Toothless". _He felt his insides twist when he thought of his best friend. _"Sorry I couldn't save you, buddy. I sure do miss you". _After a few more frustrating hours of analysis with no solution in sight, he laid his furs out to get some sleep.

The next morning, Hiccup was awakened by a strange bugling sound. _"A horn doesn't make a sound like that" _he thought. _"Must be some kind of animal. I wonder what it is"._ He walked out onto the beach and looked around for the creature that made the sound. When he heard it again and turned in the direction it was coming from, he got the shock of his life.

"_DRAGONS! But what kind of dragons are they?"_ He has never seen dragons like that before! They were slightly larger than a Monstrous Nightmare and had much different coloration. There were only two of them, flying away from him and getting smaller every second, but he could see that one of them was deep blue from head to tail and the other was completely green. _"That bugling must be how they communicate with each other. I wish I could see one of them up close"_. Unfortunately, they were only visible for a few seconds before they flew out of sight, but that was enough to pique his curiosity. _"I don't know if they're heading back to their nest, but since that's the direction I'm heading in I hope to see some more of them along the way."_

He ate some more of the deer meat for his breakfast and tried some small reddish fruits he saw growing on some trees nearby. When he found them very tasty, he picked some more of them for later. Gathering his supplies, he set off North again in the hope of seeing new dragons.

After walking for most of the morning, he stopped to rest and have some lunch. After having some more deer meat and a few of the delicious fruits he collected, he took out a braided line and some hooks. _"Might as well see if I can catch a few fish" _he thought. Using a small piece of deer meat for bait, he tossed the line out and waited for a bite. He didn't wait long before he had a huge jerk on the line and pulled in a very large fish. Like everything else in this strange land, it was a fish he's never seen before, but he gutted and cleaned it. Wrapping it in some broad leaves, he put it in the pack with the rest of his supplies. _"At least food is not going to be a problem, now all I need to do is find some water" _he thought.

Later that afternoon, he found a small stream that had good water. After filling his water skins and repacking them, he sat next to the stream to rest a while. Leaning back on his backpack, he closed his eyes and tried to listen to the sounds of the forest around him. He heard the chirping of insects and the sound of waves on the beach a short distance away. He was disappointed that he didn't hear the bugling of the dragons he heard that morning, but he heard a chirping sound that got him curious.

Opening one eye slowly, he checked his surroundings. He nearly jumped in surprise when he saw several small dragons playing next to the stream that were the same coloration as the larger ones he saw earlier. He moved slowly in order to not make any noise that may startle them and hid behind some bushes so he could watch what they were doing. The little dragons reminded him of Terrible Terrors, although these were a bit smaller. There were blues and greens like the larger dragons, but he also saw several brown dragons, two bronze colored ones, and even a brilliant gold one! From what he could see of their interaction, all the dragons deferred to the gold one. _"That one must be their leader. I'm not sure if it's a male or female, but all the others are subservient to it" _he thought.

When all the dragons had a drink and a bath, the leader bugled a note and all of them took off toward the beach. Hiccup grabbed his pack and tried to follow, but soon lost them in the trees. Sighing, he continued in the direction of the beach hoping to see them again. When he cleared the trees, he could see several of the small dragons in the tidepools collecting crabs and catching fish. He noted that if they caught something small they ate it immediately, but flew the larger specimens to a spot up the beach. He mentally marked that spot and went back into the trees to make his way there while under cover.

After circling around to get behind the spot, he paused to see if he could get a better fix on the location he saw earlier. When he could see a dragon flying from the water with a fish in its claws, he watched carefully to see where it was going. Fortunately, he guessed fairly well where their destination was, because he was only fifty feet away from where the small brown dragon deposited its load. Crouching low to stay hidden behind the bushes, he crept closer to see what they were doing. He crawled on his belly to get under a set of bushes which was right next to the group of dragons. All of them seemed to be fixated on a depression in the sand. _"Oh, wow, it's a dragon nest!" _he thought.

Hiccup could see that the gold and bronze dragons were scraping the top layer of sand from the nest, exposing the eggs to the sunlight. When all the eggs were exposed, the bronze ones backed away leaving the gold one alone in the nest. Then the gold started turning the eggs, checking each one carefully. After she was done, she left the nest to stand next to the two bronzes. _"The gold must be the queen. Nothing but the queen would handle unhatched dragon eggs"_ he thought. _"Then that means the bronzes are her mates". _He could hear a strange humming noise and realized it was coming from the dragons! "_Wait a minute, they're gathering food and not eating it, and now they're in a group staring at a dragon's nest...Oh gods, the eggs are hatching! They brought food for the baby dragons! Maybe I could give them something to eat as well"._

Hiccup crawled backwards to get out from under the bushes and went to the nearby trees. There he took off his backpack and took out the fish he caught earlier that day. Unwrapping it he took a good whiff of it. _"Good, it's still fresh. Wouldn't want to give a newborn dragon an upset stomach from __spoiled meat". _Leaving his backpack by the trees and taking the fish with him, he crawled back to his previous spot under the bushes next to the nest and waited.

Fortunately, he didn't have long to wait because he could hear the sound of eggs cracking. Within moments, several small baby dragons were crawling out of the depression, crying in hunger. The adults tore apart some of the food and were feeding it to them. The infant dragons were gulping down the food as fast as the adults could feed it to them. There were quite a few eggs in the nest and to Hiccup it seemed they were all hatching at the same time. In short order the adults were overwhelmed by crying, screeching, hungry baby dragons, so some of them wandered around looking for food. Hiccup used his knife to carve a chunk of fish away from the carcass and tossed it into the sand. An infant bronze colored dragon pounced on it, swallowed it down, and looked around crying for more. He carved another piece and tossed it closer to his hiding place, enticing the baby dragon closer. The bronze one shrieked and gobbled that one down as well. He kept cutting pieces from the fish and feeding the small bronze dragon, drawing him closer each time. When Hiccup got him to come near him, he was surprised to have it crawl onto his forearm and wrap its tail around his wrist. It continued to cry in hunger, so Hiccup kept feeding him. After a third of the fish was gone, the baby dragon gave a huge burp, wrapped its tail and talons snugly around Hiccup's wrist, and went to sleep.

Hiccup was amazed that a creature so young would trust him so completely. Even Terrible Terrors, which were some of the easiest dragons to train back home in Berk, had to be handled carefully just after they hatch because they will try to burn and eat most anything they could reach. Compared to them, this little bronze one seemed to be fully trained just out of its shell!

He was stroking his hide when he looked around to see what the other dragons were doing. He became alarmed when all of them took off to fly up the beach. Hiccup shook his arm to wake up the sleeping baby. "Hey, wake up! All your brothers and sisters are leaving! Don't you want to go with them?" The tiny dragon looked at the group of dragons flying away, gave a single chirp at them, and laid its head back down on Hiccup's arm. Hiccup lifted his head so he could look it in the eye. "Your family is leaving you, don't you even care?" The little bronze dragon looked him directly in the eye and rubbed the back of its head on Hiccup's hand. His jaw dropped when he realized what he did when he fed the baby. _"Of course he doesn't care, they mean nothing to him. I'm his family now because I'm the one who provided food. Oh, well, he's small enough. I suppose there won't be too much trouble taking care of him." _

He smiled as he stroked the tiny creature. He noticed that there were no scales, just a soft leathery hide. The small dragon crooned in his throat and leaned into the stroking. Hiccup gasped in shock at what he was feeling. _"Strange, but I could almost feel the love this little baby dragon has for me!" _When the little dragon fell asleep, he stood up and walked back to where he left his pack. After throwing the strap over one shoulder, he had to shift the dragon to his shoulder so he could get his arm through the other strap. He could feel the baby's annoyance at having its nap interrupted, but he calmed down once he was settled on Hiccup's shoulder. _"So, it wasn't just my imagination, I CAN feel this creature's emotions! Never heard of that one before. I guess I'll have to re-write the Dragon Manual when I get back home."_

He continued on his way North in higher spirits than when he started out that morning. He found that he can gather food fairly easily, he now has plenty of fresh water, and he has made a new friend. It made focusing on his goals a lot easier as well. First, he wanted to find out where the large dragons were nesting. If he could make friends with one of them as easily as he did this small one, getting back home would be a lot easier. Second, he wanted to find a human habitation and try to find out exactly WHERE in the world he was.

He could see that the sun was getting lower to the horizon, so he started looking for a place to spend the night. He found a small cave in some seaside cliffs. This one had a small tidepool running right inside, but there was a ledge high and dry above the high tide mark. _"This will do for now. I could even go fishing from the comfort of my own cave!" _he thought.

Somehow, Hiccup was able to take off the backpack without disturbing the baby bronze dragon sleeping on his shoulder. He left his backpack in the cave while he was gathering firewood. He then returned to the cave and lit a small fire to cook the remainder of the fish he caught earlier that day. The smell of cooking fish must have awoken the baby dragon because he immediately started crying that he was hungry.

"Aw, come on, I fed you just a few hours ago! You CAN'T be hungry already!" In response to this, the baby just cried louder. Hiccup could even _feel_ the infant dragon's hunger! "Hmm, I guess you really ARE hungry, little fella. All right, here you go." Hiccup broke off some of the cooked fish and held it out to the small dragon who immediately started bolting it down.

"Whoa, Whoa, slow down there, little guy. Wouldn't want you to choke on your food, okay? Eat a little slower and chew between bites. I'll have plenty of food here for you, it's not going anywhere." Hiccup reassured the little creature by stroking his hide. This seemed to calm the little dragon down.

After feeding the dragon and laying him on his furs so he could sleep it off, Hiccup stepped outside the cave so he could see the stars. He figured if he could see the positions of the constellations he could get a fix as to where in the world he was. It only took five minutes of looking at the night sky for him to realize that he was a very long way from home. NONE of the known constellations were visible. _"That should be impossible"_ he thought. _"Unless I'm completely on the bottom of the world"_. Hiccup's head started spinning at the possibility of that. _"This shouldn't be possible! Even on a dragon traveling at top speed it would wake weeks to get to the other side of the world. I know I wasn't unconscious for THAT long!"_

After looking at the night sky for a few more minutes, Hiccup shook his head and walked back into the cave. After placing another log on the fire, he picked up the sleeping dragon and placed it in his lap. The little dragon started purring in contentment and Hiccup had to smile. "Life is simple for you, isn't it little guy? Just have someone give you food and protection and you'll love them unconditionally. Wish my live was as easy as yours." Hiccup leaned his head back on his furs. He looked at the stars outside the cave and thought; _"Odin, what am I going to do? How am I going to get home?"_ Hiccup sighed and closed his eyes when no answer came. He wasn't really expecting one anyway.

Hiccup was awakened the next morning by the crying of a hungry baby dragon. He grumbled; "All right, all right, I heard you. You're starving to death, your stomach is going to eat itself from the inside out, you're ready to chew on your leg as a snack, I get it. You want to be fed and fed right now. Just let me get something from my pack." He fed the rest of the cooked fish to the dragon last night so the only food he had was the salted deer meat. Hoping he liked it, Hiccup started carving smaller pieces from it so the tiny dragon wouldn't choke. Holding the piece out, the bronze sniffed it once and snatched it out of Hiccup's hand. "Wow, I guess you really DO like it! Or are you just so hungry you'll eat anything?" In response, the baby gave an angry screech that could be easily interpreted as; _"Shut up and FEED ME!" _Hiccup laughed and held out another piece for him to eat.

Hiccup did a quick inventory of his supplies after the little bronze fell asleep after his meal. He had plenty of water, that wasn't a concern. What was a concern was his food supplies. Keeping a miniature bottomless pit satisfied was going to take a lot more than the few slabs of deer meat he had. He was going to have to use some of it as bait and do some fishing. _"Might as well do some now while he's sleeping"_ he thought. Carving a small piece from a slab, Hiccup baited the hook and tossed the line into the water right inside the cave. In a few minutes, he had a small pile of fish by his feet. _"Yep, the fishing sure is good here in the South"_ he thought.

His next catch wasn't so good, however. As he pulled it in, Hiccup could see that it was some kind of an eel. _"Aw, no, I hope my dragon doesn't smell this."_ He bashed it on the ground to stun it so he could remove the hook. He then uncoiled the line from its body and was straightening out the kinks in the line. As he was doing this, his dragon woke up and sniffed the air. Hiccup was prepared for a screech of fear and having to retrieve his frightened dragon from a corner of the cave. What he was NOT prepared for was a squeal of joy as the baby dragon launched himself from his resting place and seemingly attacked the eel. At first, Hiccup thought the bronze was trying to eat the eel, but watching him for a moment it was clear that's not what the young dragon had in mind. What he was doing was _rolling _on it. _"What the..." _Hiccup bent down to pick the eel up only to have his dragon screech at him. "Calm down, you'll get it back. I just want to see what's so special about it." The small dragon continued to complain, but Hiccup just ignored him.

Rubbing his fingers along the skin of the eel, Hiccup first thought it was slime like fish normally have on the outside of their bodies. But when he bent down to the water to wash it off, it didn't wash away like fish slime normally does. This time it felt like an oily residue was on his fingers. Hiccup looked at his small friend and remembered that he didn't have scales like the dragons back home, but a soft, leathery hide. "_So maybe this oil is good for his skin? Only one way to find out". _After scraping off a handful of slime from the eel, Hiccup bent down and placed the small dragon in his lap. He then proceeded to rub the oily slime all over the little dragon. The baby squeaked and purred and wriggled in pleasure as Hiccup rubbed it into his skin. Hiccup noticed some dry spots in his hide that seemed to disappear as he rubbed the slime over them. When he was done, Hiccup asked; "There, does that make you feel better? There's no more dry spots, but now you stink like eel. I hope you're satisfied!" The only reply Hiccup received was a contented purr.

Hiccup thought the little dragon was going to go back to sleep, but he stayed awake and was staring intently at the sky outside the cave. Hiccup could see that the dragon's eyes actually changed color! _"Huh? I could swear his eyes were blue a few minutes ago and now they're yellow. How does he do that?" _He became concerned when he noticed the little dragon was trembling. Hiccup picked him up and started stroking him, but it didn't calm the little creature down. He continued to shake, in fear or anger Hiccup wasn't really sure. Hiccup couldn't even read the emotions coming off the small dragon. "Hey, it's alright. Calm down, nothing's going to hurt you." The emotions only got stronger and Hiccup could see that the small bronze's eyes were now swirling red! "Okay, now I am officially freaking out! You can't just change your eye colors on a whim!" The small dragon ignored him and continued to stare outside.

Hiccup was going to try something else to console his dragon when he heard it, the bugling call the large dragons made. _"All right! I'll get to see one of the LARGE dragons today! Hopefully I'll get to see where their nest is located." _Hiccup started toward the entrance of the cave, only to stop in his tracks as an angry, screeching, bronze dragon flew in front of him and blocked his path. "HEY! Get out of the way, you little pest! I want to go see the bigger dragons. I know they're just outside, I heard them. Now, get out of my way!" Hiccup tried walking around the little bronze, but the dragon just shifted positions to continue blocking Hiccup. "I don't believe this! You're not going to let me go outside? What's outside that you don't want me to see?"

Hiccup could hear a sizzling sound, like something hot being dunked into water. He stayed where he was, but looked past his hovering dragon to see what was going on outside. What he saw was silver strands falling from the sky. When they hit the water it made the sizzling sound, but a few strands hit the beach. The ones in the sand seemed to writhe for a bit before dissolving into a puddle of black goo, but one or two of them hit some driftwood lying on the beach. What happened next was something worse than Hiccup's darkest nightmares. The strand started expanding and it was EATING the wood! the stuff seemed to divide and expand as it ate. Fortunately, it didn't last long. After all the wood within reach was eaten up, each one of the organisms dissolved away.

The full ramifications of what just happened hit Hiccup like Thor's hammer. If he went outside into..._that_...then all that would be left of him is a puddle of black goo. His little dragon prevented that from happening by keeping him in the cave. "You saved me" Hiccup whispered to the dragon. "You actually saved my life, and I called you a pest. I'm sorry for saying that. Forgive me?" Hiccup held his arms out to the little dragon. His eyes changed from red to a greenish-yellow shade but now went to blue as he flew into Hiccup's arms.

"You're my little guardian. I think I'll call you Heimdall. You like it?" Heimdall rubbed his head against Hiccup's cheek and purred in response. Hiccup laughed; "I take that as a yes!"

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><p><em><strong>Whew! This one went longer than expected, but I kinda like it. Tell me what you think by leaving a review. Thanks!<strong>_


	4. Chapter 4 Incommunicado

**Chapter 4 - Incommunicado**

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><p><em><strong>All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey<strong>_

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><p>Taking Heimdall's calm demeanor as a sign that the threat was over, Hiccup walked outside the cave to have a look around. He avoided the areas where he saw the...things dissolving into black puddles. The sand around where the things landed was still blackened, but the actual puddles were drying up rapidly and the residue blowing away as ash. <em>"I definitely need to find a way home because this is a VERY strange land!"<em> he thought.

Hiccup was beginning to wonder what _exactly _the strange stuff was when he heard a sound he was hoping to hear again, the bugling of large dragons. Hearing one just behind him, he turned around to look, only to reflexively duck as the shadow of a VERY large dragon passed over him. Hiccup turned quickly to see where the dragon was going and was startled to see the dragon circling to land. He got another shock to see a person RIDING on the back of the dragon!

_"DRAGONRIDERS? HERE? I thought the people of Berk were the only ones on Earth who have trained dragons to accept riders! Looks like I was wrong. " _Hiccup watched in awe as the large brown dragon descended and backwinged for a gentle landing on the sand. The rider unfastened some leather straps around his legs and slid down onto the extended foreleg of his dragon. _"Wow, they sure have these dragons well trained"_ he thought. _"If we had dragons that big in Berk, we'd either have to have ladders or take a chance with a twisted ankle or a broken leg each time we dismounted"._

The rider stood next to his dragon as he removed his gloves and tucked them into his belt. He then removed his helmet and a device which had clear glass that fitted over his eyes. Hiccup has never seen anything like them before. _"Those must be for keeping the wind out of his eyes while he's flying. Pretty handy, sure wish I knew how they made them"_ he thought. Tucking the helmet and the strange eyepieces under his arm, the rider looked at his dragon a moment before walking toward Hiccup.

Hiccup could see that the rider was not much older than he was. He was slightly taller than Hiccup and had light skin and brown hair. That was a little surprising to him. _"I've heard tales of the people in Southern lands"_ he thought. _"I was told they were all dark skinned savages. Hmm, looks like I've got a lot more to do than just rewrite the Dragon Manual. I'll have to debunk a few myths as well!" _

The rider stopped in front of Hiccup and smiled when he saw Heimdall perched on his shoulder. Hiccup smiled back but the smile on his face quickly gave way to one of confusion when the rider pointed to Heimdall and spoke for the first time. Hiccup didn't understand a word he said! The rider saw the look on Hiccup's face and said something different. Hiccup's look of confusion became a frown and he shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I can't understand a word you're saying" he told the rider. Now it was the rider's turn to frown. He said something else that sounded like a question. Even though Hiccup couldn't understand what he said, he felt it best if he shook his head.

"Sorry, I still don't understand a word you're saying." Hiccup grinned and shrugged his shoulders, trying not to offend the dragonrider. The dragonrider, however, didn't look offended, just confused. He stood back and scratched his chin for a moment. When it seemed he had an idea, he smiled and pointed to himself and said; "B'net".

Hiccup's eyes grew wide. _"Did he just tell me his name?" _he thought. _"Might as well give it a try"._

"B'net?"

The dragonrider smiled and nodded. Still pointing to himself, he repeated; "B'net". Then he pointed at Hiccup.

"My name?" he asked. B'net nodded. Hiccup pointed to himself and said; "Hiccup".

B'net just smiled and said; "Hiccup". Then he pointed at Heimdall.

Hiccup looked at Heimdall who crooned and rubbed his head against his cheek. "You want to know this little guy's name?" he asked. B'net nodded. "Heimdall" Hiccup said.

B'net's smile grew broader. He pointed to Heimdall and said; "Heimdall". Heimdall looked at B'net and gave him a single chirp. _"Heh, the little guy knows when someone is talking about him"_ Hiccup laughed to himself. Then he pointed to Hiccup and said; "Hiccup". Then he pointed to himself and Hiccup said it the same time he did; "B'net".

B'net's eyes grew wide and Hiccup wondered briefly if he offended the dragonrider in some way until B'net broke down and started laughing hysterically. Hiccup joined in his laughter a moment later and thought; _"This is probably one of the strangest days I've ever had. I've seen weird stuff that falls from the sky and devours every living thing it can reach. I've met a dragonrider in a foreign land and neither one of us can understand a word we say to each other and yet here we are laughing it up like old friends. Strange day indeed"._

After their laughter died down, B'net gestured for Hiccup to follow him. He started to follow until he realized B'net was walking back to his dragon! Hiccup paused for a moment before he realized that he's not just walking up to a strange dragon to befriend it, he's going to be introduced! He continued the rest of the way with B'net until he stood just in front of the huge brown dragon. B'net said something to the dragon and the dragon lowered his head until itwas at Hiccup's level.

Hiccup remembered everything he taught the other dragon riders back at Berk. _Remain calm, show no fear. _Extending one hand, Hiccup let it hover just above the dragon's snout. B'net seemed surprised by the gesture, but the dragon simply moved his head forward until he made contact with Hiccup's hand. Hiccup smiled and gently rubbed the dragon's snout, who rumbled in apparent pleasure at the contact. Hiccup looked at B'net and pointed to the dragon with his other hand.

"Meznith" B'net said with apparent pride.

Hiccup smiled and nodded. "Meznith" he said.

B'net smiled and nodded. Then he turned to Meznith and said something to him. Hiccup could only understand "Hiccup" and "Heimdall", so he supposed it was an introduction. What he did NOT expect was a response that could only have come from Meznith! He didn't understand the words, just his and Heimdall's names, but Hiccup could "hear" words forming in his mind! His eyes grew wide and he staggered back from Meznith in shock, but B'net just smiled and nodded. It dawned on Hiccup that it was perfectly normal for these Southern dragons to mindspeak to their riders and to whoever else they felt like speaking to! _"Wow! One more strange thing to add to a day full of strange happenings. What a tale I'm going to tell when I get back home!"_ he thought.

It seemed Heimdall wanted to get in on the "conversation" as well, so he leaned forward from Hiccup's shoulder and started chirping at Meznith. The large brown seemed to be friendly to the little bronze because he crooned a greeting as well. Heimdall gave the big brown a final chirp before laying his head back on Hiccup's shoulder, keeping his eyes on Meznith the whole time. "Made a new friend, did you?" Hiccup asked as he rubbed Heimdall's head. Heimdall leaned into the rubbing and chirped in response.

B'net watched this for a few moments before he said something to Meznith. Meznith crouched lower to the ground and offered his foreleg to assist B'net. Hiccup watched this from the side and wondered; _"Is he going to leave now? What about me? Is he just going to leave me here?" _Heimdall's eyes started to whirl yellow then orange as he picked up Hiccup's distress. Hiccup waved his arms to get B'net's attention. Once B'net was situated on Meznith's back, he looked at Hiccup and smiled as he gestured for him to climb on. Hiccup asked; "You want me to come with you?" accompanied with hand gestures hoping the dragonrider understood. Apparently, B'net got the gist of what Hiccup was trying to convey, because he smiled and gestured for him again to climb on. Hiccup held up his hand and walked back to the cave for his backpack and supplies. Once he got everything packed, he walked back to where Meznith was still crouched in the sand. When he got closer, he noticed B'net staring at his left leg.

"Oh, this?" Hiccup said as he lifted it for B'net to see better. "I lost this about a year ago. It gave me problems at first, but now I can get around with very little pain." B'net looked at it for a second longer and shrugged. Hiccup wasn't sure if B'net didn't understand or if he thought what was said wasn't that important. _"I sure hope we find a better way to communicate. I could easily say or do SOMETHING that can have nasty consequences. Especially around people whose dragons are bigger than any I've ever seen, except one." _Hiccup shuddered at the memory of his and Toothless's battle with the Red Death. _"And I hope to never see one that big and nasty ever again!"_

B'net frowned at Hiccup and said; "Hiccup" to get his attention. B'net then made a show of fastening his jacket, then pointing up, then hugging himself and shaking as if he was cold. Hiccup looked confused for a moment, then he understood._ "He's trying to tell me it's going to get cold where we are flying and I might need something warmer." _Hiccup held up a hand to tell him to wait and dug into his backpack. At the moment, he was wearing a thin shirt because of the warmer weather. Now he pulled out the undershirt and fur tunic he wore whenever he went flying back home. Memories of flying caused him to choke down an involuntary sob. _"I'm going flying again on a dragon and it's not Toothless."_ Hiccup put Heimdall on his backpack so he could put the garments on. As he pulled the undershirt over his head, he paused to wipe his moist eyes so B'net couldn't see.

Once he was dressed properly and had his backpack secured, Hiccup placed Heimdall on his shoulder and approached Meznith. Seeing how B'net was bending down to help him, Hiccup put his foot on Meznith's extended foreleg, grabbed B'net's forearm, and swung into position behind him. B'net pointed to some straps and gestured slowly to show Hiccup how they were secured. Hiccup wrapped the straps around his legs and one around his middle, tightened them, then secured them to the harness. B'net checked it over, nodded once, and turned forward to give directions for Meznith to take off.

Before he did, however, Hiccup had a moment of panic. "Wait, wait!" he shouted. "What about Heimdall?" he said, pointing at his bronze. "Aren't we going to secure him too?" B'net looked at the little bronze dragon and shrugged. He then opened his jacket and made a gesture as if he was putting something inside and wrapping his jacket around it. Hiccup nodded in understanding. _"Ah, I see. He wants me to put Heimdall under my fur tunic. Good idea, that way he won't fall off. I know he has wings and he won't get hurt if he falls off, but if he does he won't be able to keep up with a big dragon like Meznith"._

Hiccup looked at his little friend. "Heimdall, buddy, I know you may want to stay outside and enjoy the flight, but I need to put you under my jacket". Heimdall got the gist of what Hiccup was trying to do and wanted none of it. His eyes started whirling orange and he was giving off a low hiss. "Hey, hey, don't be that way. I just don't want to lose you if something happens. I've already lost one friend in a flying accident, I don't want to lose another". Sensing Hiccup's distress, Heimdall's eyes went from orange to yellow and he started mewling. He also rubbed his head against Hiccup's cheek. Hiccup rubbed his head and said; "Hey, it's alright. I understand you don't like to be confined, but if you do this I promise lots of extra food and a good oil rubdown when we get to where we're going. Sound good?" Hiccup wasn't sure if he understood the words, but he was pretty sure Heimdall understood the emotions behind them because his eyes turned blue-green and he started humming happily. Hiccup smiled and told Heimdall before he wrapped his jacket around him; "Thanks, buddy. See you when we get there". Hiccup then nodded to B'net to show he was ready.

Meznith extended his wings, crouched low to the ground, and sprang into the air with a powerful downstroke of his large wings. After two more wingbeats, he stopped ascending and leveled off. Hiccup was starting to enjoy the flight. _"Meznith sure gets off the ground fast for a dragon as big as he is"_ he thought. Hiccup was looking around and enjoying the scenery. B'net turned his head and said something to Hiccup. Of course, he didn't understand what he said but he caught Meznith's name in there. _"What did he say? Is Meznith going to do something?" _Hiccup barely completed that thought before everything went completely black. _"What the...? What just happened? What the Hel just happened?" _He couldn't see, couldn't feel, couldn't hear ANYTHING at all. It was as if the entire universe ceased to exist. All Hiccup could feel was the bone-numbing cold on the outside of his skin and a rising wave of despair coming from within. Just when he thought he couldn't stand it anymore, they were out of that dreadful place and back in the sunshine. Hiccup had to clench his teeth to keep from screaming. He closed his eyes and concentrated on his breathing to calm himself down. _"Gods, what WAS that? I hope I never see that dreadful place again! It felt like death!" _

Once Hiccup's breathing was under control, he opened his eyes and looked around. He drew in a quick breath in shock, there were dragons everywhere! Hiccup could see blue, green, brown, and a few bronze dragons circling a large extinct volcanic crater. _"WOW! DRAGONS! But wait, how did we...?" _He looked at the surrounding land. When they took off, the beach was just below them. Now it was nowhere in sight. _"Okay, that's just weird. How did we get here so quickly? I know we weren't in the dark place that long"_ he thought.

Meznith bugled to the other dragons below. One of them answered him. Whether it was a greeting or a challenge Hiccup didn't know, but they started their descent into the crater. He could see caves at all levels of the crater wall, most of them with dragons lying in front of them. _"Must be enjoying the sunshine"_ he chuckled. _"Dragons will be dragons"_.

Meznith circled the bowl of the crater and landed in front of a large cave that opened at ground level. B'net unhooked his straps and gestured for Hiccup to do the same. Hiccup was unbuckling his straps as B'net stood on Meznith's foreleg and gestured for Hiccup to do the same. Once both of them were standing on his foreleg, Meznith lowered it so they could step off. Meznith craned his head around so he could see his riders. B'net laid his forehead on Meznith's snout and rubbed the ridges over his eyes. Meznith just closed his eyes and hummed in his throat. Hiccup felt a pang of jealousy as he watch the two interact. _"They have a deeper bond than anything Toothless or I ever had"_ he thought. Feeling like a voyeur, he turned away from watching them.

Hiccup opened his jacket and Heimdall scrambled out to sit on his shoulder. He started chirping madly at the sight of all the huge dragons around him. Hiccup rubbed Heimdall on the head and neck and he crooned in response. "How are you doing, little buddy? Enjoy the ride?" Heimdall looked at him with eyes swirling blue and cheeped at him. Hiccup laughed and said; "I take that as a yes".

Hiccup started looking around the crater when B'net tapped him on the shoulder and made a gesture for him to follow. They went into the large cave opening and Hiccup saw that it opened into an immense cavern. There were smaller caves branching off from the main one, but Hiccup could see that the main cavern was set up as a meeting place for all the people dwelling here. Hiccup followed B'net around the tables set up in the cavern and went into one of the smaller rooms set off from the main one.

B'net gestured to one of the chairs in the room and took a seat at a different one. Hiccup looked puzzled for a moment and sat in the indicated chair. Looking at B'net, he noticed his eyes going unfocused for a few moments. _"What the...? Is he okay? It looked like he wasn't there for a few seconds"_ Hiccup thought. When his eyes refocused, B'net looked at Hiccup and nodded. Hiccup wondered what that was all about when the curtain over the door parted and a man and a woman walked in. B'net immediately stood up so Hiccup did as well. The woman started asking questions and B'net tried to answer, but he kept getting interrupted by more questions. Hiccup had the feeling that these people weren't happy about something. _"I hope I'm not the cause of their problems"_ he thought. _"That would be all I need, stuck in a strange land and the first thing I do when I meet someone is piss off the natives"._

The woman approached Hiccup and started barraging HIM with questions as well. Hiccup held up his hands hoping to fend off her assault and said; "Look, lady, I don't speak your language and I'm sure you don't understand mine. All I want to do is get back to my home, Berk. Have you heard of it?" Hiccup sighed when he saw the looks of confusion on their faces. He thought; _"Of course they don't know where Berk is. Hel, they can't even understand my language. How am I going to let them know what I want?" _B'net started talking again and Hiccup's head snapped up when he heard his name being mentioned. The woman and the man asked more questions which B'net answered. Finally, it seemed a decision was reached because the two nodded to B'net, glanced once at Hiccup, and left the room. B'net gestured again for Hiccup to follow him and led him back outside. B'net's eyes went unfocused again and a few seconds later a dragon lifted off from one of the ledges high above. As he circled in to land, Hiccup could see that it was Meznith! _"Did B'net somehow call to him?"_ he wondered. _"I didn't hear him say anything! How did he DO that?"_

After the dragon landed, B'net re-mounted Meznith and gestured for Hiccup to do the same. Hiccup was reluctant to leave until he looked at B'net who was smiling and nodding. He also noticed that Meznith craned his head around to look directly at him. Hiccup was looking at his blue swirling eyes and saw one eyelid close and open rapidly. _"What the...Did that dragon just...wink at me?"_ he thought. Hearing an amused rumble coming from Meznith, Hiccup thought; _"Yep, strange day indeed"._

Taking his place behind B'net, Hiccup secured himself along with tucking Heimdall back under his jacket. With a mighty leap, Meznith was airborne again. Once they cleared the rim of the crater, B'net turned and said something to Hiccup. _"Wait a minute, that sounds familiar. He said that just before we __went to..."_ Hiccup's eyes grew wide. He shouted; "NO! WAIT..." but everything went black again. Hiccup closed his eyes and counted slowly. He figured that if he concentrated on something else it wouldn't be so bad. He got to five when he could feel the sun on his face again. _"That wasn't so bad that time. At least I was expecting it"_ he thought.

Looking around, Hiccup could see they were in ANOTHER place totally different from the one they left. _"This is really freaky. You go into the dark in one place and come out of it in another. I wonder, do these dragons have anything to do with that?"_ Hiccup looked down as Meznith circled and noticed they were heading for a group of buildings clustered around a larger one. There was a lot of activity going on, with both men and dragons working together. _"I wish Dad were here to see this, he'd be impressed with the partnership these people have with their dragons"._

Meznith landed in front of the large building and crouched down. Once they dismounted, B'net led Hiccup to the large building he saw earlier. When he got closer to the building, Hiccup could see that it was like no other building he's ever seen before. Oh, sure, he's seen taller buildings, castles and such, but none with walls as smooth as these. Hiccup stopped just outside the door and ran his hand along the wall. _"Not a bump or splinter or chip. Smooth as a frozen lake in wintertime. I wonder how they made it and what it's made from". _Hiccup stopped his reverie when B'net gestured for him to continue. "Yeah, yeah, I'm coming. I hope it's worth it, whatever you brought me here for" he grumbled.

B'net led him to a room with three white walls and one with a black section on it. there were chairs in the room facing the black section. Hiccup could see some lights in the corner of the black section blinking on and off. He wondered what they were for when he heard B'net start speaking. Hiccup thought he was talking to him because they were the only ones in the room, but he noticed B'net speaking to the wall! _"What does he hope to accomplish? A wall can't answer a...". _Hiccup's jaw nearly hit the ground when the "wall" appeared to do precisely that! The voice seemed to be coming from the black section of the wall. Hiccup assumed it was just a trick. _"There must be someone hiding behind this wall. Maybe their equivalent of the village wise man. They just come to this room and ask questions. He never shows his face because that would break his power. Yeah, that has to be it."_ Smiling to himself, Hiccup leaned against the wall and waited for B'net to finish.

B'net asked a few more questions with the "wall" providing answers. After the last one, B'net turned to Hiccup and gestured for him to ask questions as well! _"Oh, well, might as well try. Maybe whoever is behind this wall can understand Norse. Well, here goes". _"Um, hello. My name is Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third. My father is chieftain of a village to the North of here called Berk. perhaps you've heard of it?" When there was no response, Hiccup continued. "Well, you see, I was flying home from a hunting trip on my dragon, Toothless, when a storm came up from nowhere and we got hit by a bolt of lightning. I guess it knocked me out and I drifted for a while because the next thing I know is waking up on a strange beach. I know I'm somewhere to the South of Berk but I have no idea..."

"I have heard enough" the voice from the wall said.

Hiccup recoiled in shock. "So, you DO understand Norse" he said.

"I did not understand before, but I do now".

"What does that mean, you didn't understand before?"

"I analyzed your speech patterns and cross referenced them with information in my stored memory. I have files on the ancient languages of Earth and had to find the right one".

"Whoa, whoa, wait a minute. I didn't understand half the stuff you said and I'm considered a pretty smart guy by the people of my village. Just who are you and what are you talking about 'ancient languages'?"

Hiccup heard a sigh coming from the "wall". "This will take some time to explain, but allow me to introduce myself. It is incorrect to call me a 'who'. I am more of a 'what'".

Hiccup grimaced and thought; _"Oh, boy, this guy is completely crazy. I'd better humor him"._ "Okay, I'll play along. WHAT are you?"

"I am an artificial intelligence voice-address system".

"Huh?"

"You can call me AIVAS".

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><p><em>AN: WOW! Longest chapter yet, and the hardest one for me to write. I had to "see" Pern through the eyes of someone who's never been there before and it's not an easy thing to do. Some of you may be wondering about characters and situations in this chapter and I want to address them here._

_1. I know Hiccup in the books and the movie spoke English, but I'm writing him as an actual Viking who speaks Norse. That's why I titled this chapter 'incommunicado' because of the language barrier_.

_2. B'net and Meznith are characters I invented for this story. If there is a B'net or a Meznith floating around in someone else's story, I apologize in advance for stepping on anyone's toes._

_3. No, the weyr is not Benden and it was not F'lar and Lessa who talked to B'net and questioned Hiccup. _

_4. Yes, that is the AIVAS from Ninth Pass before it deactivated._

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><p><em><strong>Thanks for reading and please leave a review<strong>_


	5. Chapter 5 AIVAS

**Chapter 5 - AIVAS**

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><p><em>AN: Hi everyone. Thanks to slytherinsal, iluvcats09, Dygen Entreri, D4sssy, Moriko, and Scorching for leaving reviews.  
><em>

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><p><em><strong>All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.<strong>_

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><p>"Aivas? What kind of name is that?" Hiccup asked.<p>

"It is not really a name, it is actually a designation. It is what the humans of Pern call me".

"Pern? Is that the name of this strange land?"

"No, this land is called the Southern continent. The name of the planet itself is Pern".

Hiccup was getting more and more confused. "Planet, you said? Is that what the people of this land call the Earth, 'Pern'?"

"You misunderstand, we are not on Earth anymore. This is a very different planet from Earth".

_"This guy is totally nuts"_ Hiccup thought. _"He wants me to believe we are on a different planet. Maybe if I humor him he will give some information that will get me home"._

"Okay, Aivas, lets say I believe you. Where exactly is this planet Pern located?"

"Pern is the third planet circling the G-class star Rubkat. It is located in the constellation Sagittarius and is approximately two hundred light-years from Earth".

"Wait a minute, that term you used, 'light year', that refers to distance, does it?"

"Very good, Hiccup, you are correct. You are familiar with the distance measurement _'rast'_?"

Hiccup had a momentary shock, but figured that this Aivas knew he was a Viking because of his speaking Norse. "Yes I'm familiar with it, every Viking is taught distance measurements when they learn how to sail."

"That is good, your knowledge of distance will help you understand the distances involved. Light travels at a speed of approximately twenty six thousand five hundred _rast _per second. If it travels that distance in one second,imagine the distance traveled in a minute. Keep going until you have the distance traveled in a year. Pern is two hundred of these light-years from Earth".

Hiccup's head spun as he thought of the distances involved. _"Yep, that WOULD be a very long way from Berk, but he's crazy if he thinks I'm buying his story. Might as well keep up the pretense that I believe him, maybe he'll tell me something useful"._

"Okay, Aivas, so I'm a very long way from Earth and Berk. How exactly did I get here? Can you answer that?"

Aivas was silent for a few seconds and then responded; "You said you were flying home when a bolt of lightning struck you and you woke up here. That is correct?"

"Yes, that is what I remember happening".

"And you were over the island when you were hit?"

"Well, not really. Toothless and I were descending for a landing on the beach. Technically we were still over water, but we were very close to land when we were struck".

"I do not have a firm answer for how you got here, Hiccup, but based on information stored in my data banks, I do have a theory of what may have happened. Would you like to hear it?"

Hiccup took a seat; "By all means, fire away".

"Twenty six years before the colony ships left Earth for Pern, records in my archives tell of a failed experiment conducted in the Faroe Islands. The experiment was supposed to be research in matter transferral. In other words, a way of turning solid objects into energy and sending them long distances instantly. The objective of the experiment was _supposed_ to test the theories of matter transferral, but post-incident interviews with the few survivors suggest something different. It was believed that the project's chief scientist and major funding contributor, Sherman Brascoe, secretly wanted to travel backwards in time to a place where humans and dragons were known to co-exist. He was the one who chose the island of Berk as the location to conduct the experiment. That way, the energy used for the matter transferral could be dedicated to breaching time instead of distance".

"Apparently, something went wrong with the experiment. The scientists were testing the machinery and conducted a full power test prior to sending a test subject through. During the power-up phase of the test, there was an unexpected energy spike that went through the transfer chamber and it exploded, killing Doctor Brascoe, several lead scientists, and destroying most of the facility's machinery. It was fortunate for those who investigated the accident that the computers controlling and recording the experiment were separate from the matter transfer chamber. Those records show that even though the experiment failed and the machinery was destroyed, the scientists were successful in opening a rift in space and time. Apparently, they sent a "bubble" of energy backward in time. My theory is that when this energy arrived in your time some of it dissipated in the atmosphere around Berk, causing a large storm. When the main energy spike manifested itself, it encircled you and your dragon and hurled you through space and time to land here on Pern".

Hiccup sat in the chair with his arms crossed. As Aivas told its story, the look on his face changed from skeptical disbelief to one of anger. Heimdall was picking up Hiccup's agitation and his eyes were rapidly swirling orange with streaks of red. When Aivas finished its story, Hiccup was ready to explode. He jumped up from his seat and started shouting at the black wall.

"You want me to believe that crazy story? That someone built a machine that snatched me and part of my dragon out of the sky and sent us Gods-know how many miles into space to land on a planet that no one has ever heard of? You must think I'm nuts to believe that! Nothing like that even exists on Earth! And even if it did, I'm supposed to be grateful it kept me alive and dumped me here? IT KILLED MY DRAGON! That "bubble" of energy you said was sent back in time didn't encircle my entire dragon, just his head and neck. So, even though I got through it okay, Toothless is dead because of it!"

After he finished his tirade, Hiccup slumped back in his seat. Heimdall was still upset that his friend was feeling so sad. He tried rubbing Hiccup's cheek and crooning sadly, but Hiccup just ignored him.

After a few minutes of silence, Aivas responded; "I am truly sorry that you have lost your friend, Hiccup, but what I have told you is the best explanation for what happened to you. I can assure you that technology has come a long way since the time of the Vikings".

Hiccup's head snapped up at that; "What do you mean by that last remark, 'Since the time of the Vikings'? The Vikings are still around! I was with my friends just a few days ago". Hiccup remembered something Aivas said earlier. He asked; "Just how far DID that thing send me through time?"

"Based on archaeological records, your village existed sometime between the years 800 to 1100AD. The colony ships left Earth in the year 2672AD and took fifteen years to reach Pern. It has now been twenty five hundred years since the colonists landed here".

Hiccup swallowed hard; "So that means..."

"You have been sent four thousand years into your future, Hiccup".

Hiccup jumped to his feet and screamed; "ENOUGH! That is ENOUGH! I've had enough of your lies! I've been patient, listening to what you have to say and hoping that you will tell me something that I can use to get back home. Now you're telling me that my home and everyone I know doesn't exist anymore? No, I refuse to believe it! If you won't help me, I'll find someone else who will!"

Hiccup grabbed his backpack and started toward the door. B'net made a move to block his way, but after a word from Aivas, he stood aside with a sad look on his face. Hiccup glared at him as he passed and stalked out the building. Once outside, he scanned his surroundings and chose to make his way to some rocks just beyond the trees. Hiccup found an easy slope to climb and reached the summit in short order. Once there, he took off his backpack and sat close to the edge. He could see the entire plain with the half-buried buildings laid out before him. Heimdall crooned sadly on his shoulder.

"What am I going to do, little buddy?" he said as he rubbed Heimdall's head. "I had hopes that these people would be able to help me get home, but all they want to do is jerk me around". Hiccup snorted; "'Different planet, different time' HAH! Do they think I'm stupid? Why don't they just say they don't want to help me?" Heimdall's eyes were yellow with sadness, but now started whirling orange as Hiccup became more agitated. Hiccup saw how his emotions were affecting his little friend and struggled to control himself.

"Aw, I'm sorry little buddy" he said as he scratched Heimdall's chin. Heimdall's eyes started whirling green as he hummed happily in response to Hiccup's ministrations.

Trying to think of his options, Hiccup leaned back on his backpack and looked up at the late afternoon sky. Since his mind was elsewhere, it didn't register for a few seconds that there were now two moons! As soon as it did, he sat up quickly and rubbed his eyes. When he opened them, there were still two moons in the sky! _"What the Hel? How could there be TWO moons now? Unless..."_

Hiccup's jaw dropped open in shock. _"Everything that Aivas said is true. I'm on a different planet far from home. My village is gone and my family has turned to dust. My best friend is dead and I'm all alone"._ He knew that his best friend was already gone, but he was holding on to the hope that he would eventually be reunited with his friends and family. Now, the hope of that was gone as well. Hiccup bowed his head and allowed the tears to fall.

Heimdall sensed Hiccup's sadness and started crooning sadly. Hiccup ignored him for a while and continued to grieve for friends and family he will never see again. When Heimdall's cries became too much for Hiccup to bear, he scratched his head and said; "I haven't forgotten you, little buddy. You're the only friend I've got now, so whatever comes I'll always have you with me. What do you say to that?" Heimdall's eyes whirled a bit slower. They stayed yellow because Hiccup was still sad, but Heimdall rubbed his head against Hiccup's cheek in an effort to cheer him up. Hiccup stood and put on his backpack and said; "Let's get back before it gets too dark, okay?"

o0o0o0o

The sun had just begun to set as Hiccup cleared the jungle and made his way toward the Aivas building. He could see B'net just outside the entrance leaning against Meznith and rubbing his eye ridges. Hiccup walked inside the building, gesturing for B'net to come with him. B'net stood quickly, brushing the dust from his legs and smiling. Hiccup grinned back and together they went back into the Aivas room.

"Hello, Hiccup. I am glad to see that you have returned safely".

"Yeah, well, I needed a little time to think" Hiccup paused for a moment and thought of another question; "So, there is really no way for me to get home? Not even if a dragon can take me?"

Aivas asked; "When did you figure out the dragons can teleport?"

"Teleport?"

"The ability to move from one place to another using the power of the mind".

"Ah, I see. Well, I figured it out the second time I rode Meznith. B'net said something to him and I guess he was warning me what was coming because he said the same thing both times we did it. I guess Meznith was the one doing the teleporting because I've never heard of a person doing it".

"Well, you were right in assuming that it is the dragons who can teleport, but they need accurate co-ordinates of their destination which they get from the minds of their riders. Since neither B'net nor any other dragonrider on Pern has ever seen Berk, none of them could give the directions needed to make it there safely. Even if you did manage to get to Berk, well, I am sorry to say, the Berk you knew does not exist any more".

Hiccup sighed and said; "Yeah, I kind of figured that, but I had to ask. So, what do I do now?"

"Do you have any training in a craft? You mentioned sailing, do you know how to sail and fish?"

"Yes, I do know how to sail and fish, but the thing I really enjoy is inventing things. I've been training as a blacksmith's apprentice for three years under Gobber, our village blacksmith. I would put things together in his shop during my free time. Mind you, most of them didn't work right, but I manage to get some good ideas out of even my scrapped projects. Is there something similar that I can do here?"

"I may have just the thing for you, Hiccup. Wait a moment". Aivas said something to B'net who smiled and nodded. B'net said something back and then went outside. Aivas then switched back to Norse and addressed Hiccup.

"I have sent brown rider B'net to bring someone here you may want to meet. In the meantime, I have come up with lessons to help you learn the language as quickly as possible. I take it that you can read?"

Hiccup rolled his eyes; "Of course I can read, how else can I take measurements to get my inventions right?"

Aivas replied; "No offense was intended, Hiccup, but I had to ask. I am now printing some pages for a language lesson book. Once I am done printing them, I will print another page with directions on it for the book binder. Take them to the third building to the right as you exit this one and he will put them into book form".

"I thank you for all this Aivas, but I have to ask, why? You've only just met me and all I've ever done is insult you. So, why are you doing all this for me?"

"It is my primary function to serve mankind, Hiccup. You are a person in need and I am here to help, so I am helping in the best way I can". A drawer opened and a pile of neatly stacked printed pages was inside. "Take the first page from the top of the stack and give that to the binder, he will know what to do. You do not have to say anything to them, just smile and shrug your shoulders if anyone asks you anything. Please return here when you have given this to the binder".

Hiccup removed the stack of papers and removed the first sheet. Exiting the Aivas building, he found the binder shop and gave the stack to the man with the directions on it. The man read the directions, nodded to Hiccup, and turned away to his work. _"Huh, I guess the directions Aivas gave were good enough, I didn't have to speak at all" _Hiccup grinned and returned to the Aivas building.

"Did you find the binder shop?" Aivas asked him.

"Yep, and I didn't have to say anything. Of course, it would be nice to speak the language".

"Do not worry, Hiccup. While speaking with you, I can see that you are a very intelligent young man. You will be able to learn the basics of the language in a short period of time. I have printed another page with something that will be of use in a few minutes. Please take it and study it now".

The drawer opened and Hiccup removed the page. After reading it for a second, he asked Aivas; "What language is this?"

Aivas responded; "The language spoken by the original colonists was Earth Standard or English. Despite the efforts of the planet's teachers there have been subtle shifts in the language, so it is very different from English. You could call it Pernese".

"Pernese, huh? Okay, it doesn't look too hard". Hiccup read the passage again and asked; "It's a greeting? Who is this person that I will be greeting?"

"Someone very important to the well being of Pern. Ah, here he comes now".

Hiccup turned to the door as B'net walked in with a VERY large man just behind him. The man said something to Aivas and Aivas responded. Then the giant of a man turned to Hiccup with a raised eyebrow. Hiccup cleared his throat and recited in Pernese the greeting Aivas gave him.

"Greetings Mastersmith Fandarel. My name is Hiccup and I want to apply for apprenticeship to the Smithcrafthall".

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><p><em>AN: Hey, it's another chapter. Thanks, everyone for reading and please review. Reviews make Heimdall very happy. Just a few notes before I go:_

_1. "Rast" is a Viking term used to measure distance. It is the distance a man could travel on foot before having to take a rest and is approximately 7 miles._

_2. When I thought up the time travel angle, I envisioned the bubble of energy as what was in the "Terminator" movies, except it transports EVERYTHING inside its bubble, not just living flesh. That way, Hiccup keeps his backpack and all his gear._

_3. I've searched high and low, but I can't find ANYTHING that suggests WHEN the colony ships left Earth. I suppose the date wasn't too important for Anne's story, so she left it out. I picked the year 2672 because I figure that is enough time for the people of Earth to straighten out their affairs, start to colonize the stars, start and end a war with an alien race, and build the colony ships for the trip to Pern. If anyone knows anything different, please send me a message and I'll change it._

_4. For those who are wondering, Toothless comes back in the next chapter! YAY!  
><em>


	6. Chapter 6 Smithcrafthall

**Chapter 6 - Smithcrafthall **

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><p><em><strong>AN: **I know I promised in the last chapter that Toothless makes his return in this one, but I'm going to have to take a little detour. _

_When I started writing this chapter, I originally called it; "Impressions". The first paragraph would have read; "Three months after arriving on Pern, Hiccup earned his Journeyman rank. Trusted with an important project that was vital to the safety of all Pern, Mastersmith Fandarel sent Hiccup along with another journeyman South to Landing". _

_I know, I know, it's kind of lame, but it was a start. I wanted to get to the Impression, but I also realized that I was skipping out on a pretty important part of the story. So, that's why I decided to split this into two chapters. I've already finished the next chapter before I started working on this one, so I'll have it up tomorrow._

_Thanks for reading, everyone._

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p>The day after he arrived at the Smithcrafthall, Hiccup met with Mastersmith Fandarel and a few other Masters in order for them to find out what he knew about smithing. He used the book Aivas gave him to find the words he needed to say. Speaking slowly in order to not mess up pronunciation, he said; "Worked as black-smith app-ren-tice. Three years. Want to do met-al work here. Please?" Hiccup closed the book and smiled at the gathered Masters. Hoping to make a good first impression, he showed the Mastersmith his journal and the drawings of his inventions. The Mastersmith thumbed through the drawings, raising his eyebrow at some, and nodding at most. Trying to speak slowly and using hand gestures so Hiccup could understand, the Mastersmith asked him; "You did this yourself? No help?" Looking through the Aivas book, Hiccup translated the Mastersmith's words and figured he was asking if anyone helped him on his projects. Hiccup found the appropriate words and answered; "No help, myself I did".<p>

Mastersmith Fandarel jaw dropped in surprise. He turned to his fellow Masters and said quietly; "With no formal training except what he learned from his village blacksmith, this kid was able to figure out how to invent things on his own. It would take one of our apprentices years of training to reach the point this kid has on an instinctive level! We DEFINITELY need to train him up to see what his capabilities are". The other Masters nodded in agreement. Mastersmith Fandarel turned and faced Hiccup.

"Hiccup". He then tapped on the Aivas book. "Learn Pernese". He then swept his arm around the Smithcrafthall. "Then learn all this". Turning to Hiccup, he raised his eyebrow and said; "Yes?"

Hiccup didn't need the book to figure out what the Mastersmith just said. Looking up at him and smiling, he replied; "Yes".

o0o0o0o0o

Hiccup used the Aivas language book to quickly learn Pernese. He was still learning and making mistakes, but the Masters felt that he knew enough to understand their instructions. They started with safety procedures and techniques and then allowed him to experiment on his own. They found that when they gave him a work project, not only did he deliver it on time, but in several cases he improved on the original design! He progressed rapidly through training so that four sevendays after he arrived at the Smithcrafthall, the Masters conferred and agreed that Hiccup learned enough to be promoted to Senior Apprentice.

Hiccup spent every waking moment after that determined to prove himself worthy of the Mastersmith's trust in him. He would look for any books on almost every subject on Pern and study them. Not only did this help him understand the language, but it also served to increase his base of knowledge. He felt that if he knew more about the people of his new home, the better prepared he would be to design new things to improve their lives.

He also took lessons on Pern's history from Harper Cregan. Whenever he had the spare time, Hiccup would show up for lessons. He didn't care that he was the oldest student there, as he was just as enraptured by the Harper's stories as the younger students. When the stories and teaching songs were finished, Cregan would test his students on the subjects covered. At first, he was mildly surprised that Hiccup would get every question right. As Hiccup kept showing up for lessons, Cregan would stretch himself to come up with material to keep Hiccup interested. After two sevendays, Cregan called Hiccup to his office.

"You wanted to see me, Harper?"

Cregan waved to a chair. "Yes, Hiccup. Come in and have a seat. Would you like some klah?"

"Yes, thank you". Cregan poured two cups and gave Hiccup one of them. When he sat behind his desk, he regarded the young man seated in front of him before he spoke again.

"Hiccup, I've been very impressed with your progress here. You show up for lessons every day despite having duties in the Smithcrafthall and absorb knowledge like a sponge! It's getting to the point where I wouldn't have anything left to teach you and I'll have to start taking lessons from you!" Cregan gave a short bark of laughter to which Hiccup added one of his own. Then Cregan sobered and asked him; "All joking aside, Hiccup, I don't have much more to offer you. Would you be interested in transferring your apprenticeship to the Harper Hall? I know they can stretch and grow your abilities much more readily than I can do here".

Hiccup put his mug on the desk and regarded the Harper. "Harper Cregan, I do appreciate the offer, but my place is here. You've heard my story and where I come from?" Cregan nodded. "Being a blacksmith was the only thing I was good at in my village. I want to be a smith, using my talents to build things and help people. While I thank you for the lessons and helping me learn the language and traditions of Pern, I must decline your offer".

Cregan bowed his head and then nodded. "Alright, Hiccup, I respect your decision, but the offer remains open. Remember that my office is always open in case you need anything".

"Thank you, Harper Cregan". Hiccup stood up to leave, but then turned to the Harper and asked him; "There is one thing you could do. If there are any new books or teaching songs that come out, would you let me know?"

Cregan laid his hand on his shoulder and said; "You'll be the first".

Hiccup thanked the Harper and left his office. As he made his way across the grounds to the barracks, Heimdall flew from his sunning perch and landed on his shoulder. "Ah, there you are, little buddy. Have a good day? See anything new and interesting?" Heimdall cheeped excitedly and sent images of things he saw that day. Hiccup couldn't make much sense of it, as he was seeing it through Heimdall's faceted eyes, but it made his friend happy to share things. Hiccup laughed and scratched Heimdall's chin as he purred happily.

Hiccup was halfway across the courtyard when he heard behind him; "Hey, Hiccup, wait up!" Hiccup turned and saw Trayner running across the courtyard and stopped to wait for his friend to catch up. Hiccup did have a few friends here at the Smithcrafthall, but Trayner seemed to stick by him more than the others. At twelve turns old, he was three turns younger than Hiccup, but that didn't seem to matter to either one of them. A small blue streak launched itself from one of the rooftops and flew to Trayner's shoulder. Trayner scratched Sky's headknob as his fire lizard crooned at him. Hiccup smiled at his friend as he caught up. "Learn anything new from the Harper?" Trayner asked.

"No, not much. He told me there's not much more he could teach me".

Trayner laughed and slapped his back. "It's not surprising, the way you study. That's all you do all the time! Don't you ever have fun?"

Hiccup smiled at his friend's exuberance. "I DO have fun, Trayner. I enjoy metalworking and learning new things".

Trayner scoffed and said; "Pffft, that's WORK! How can WORK be considered fun?"

Hiccup turned to look at him; "Okay, what would YOU consider as fun?"

Trayner tapped his chin for a moment thinking of what they could do that was "fun". Then he turned to Hiccup with an evil look on his face.

Hiccup grimaced; "Uh-oh, I don't think I'm going to like this!"

"Aw, come on, Hiccup. You'll love it!"

"Yep, definitely getting into the 'not liking this' territory. Anytime someone says that to me, something bad happens".

"Sheesh, you haven't even heard what I got planned and already you're putting it down!"

"Okay, okay, I'll listen to what you have to say, what have you got in mind?"

Trayner leaned closer and whispered; "We set up a good prank on Bentrel".

Hiccup stopped and looked at his friend. Bentrel was pretty much the only thing that Hiccup could find at fault with the Smithcrafthall. He came to the Hall two turns ago and was only recently promoted to Senior Apprentice. Hiccup thought that the only reason he was promoted was that his father was the Lord Holder of some minor Hold to the South. Bentrel was barely competent enough with the tools and equipment to keep from killing himself and others around him. He didn't have the imagination or the drive to improve himself, so when other apprentices moved up in rank before him, he vented his frustration by bullying the younger students. Strangely enough, the only time he did have drive and imagination was the steps he took to avoid being caught at it.

Hiccup looked at Trayner and grinned evilly; "Bentrel? I'm liking this plan of yours already. What did you have in mind?"

Trayner jumped for joy and grabbed Hiccup's arm. "Come on, we've got to hurry in order to set everything up!"

Later that evening, Hiccup and Trayner left the dining hall early in order to get to the barracks before everyone else. Setting up their prank, they went to another part of the barracks and waited for Bentrel to arrive. When he came in, Hiccup had to punch Trayner in the shoulder to keep him from giggling. Bentrel turned to look at Trayner with a sneer on his face.

"What's so funny, wimpy?"

Trayner coughed and put a hand in front of his mouth to hide the smirk; "Nothing".

"It's not 'nothing', I heard you laughing. Now, what's so funny?"

Hiccup said; "Leave him alone, Bentrel".

Bentrel turned to him; "I wasn't talking to you, gimpy. Stay out of this!"

Hiccup started laughing. "Is that the best you could come up with, Bentrel? 'Wimpy and Gimpy'. It sounds like some comedy routine. Say, Trayner, let's go into the traveling Harper business. We'll call our show 'The Wimpy and Gimpy Comedy Hour'. We'll fill up auditoriums all over Pern. What do you say?"

Trayner was laughing hysterically, but Bentrel turned nearly purple with rage. He started to charge at Hiccup, but stopped when he saw Journeyman Jencis walk by the door to the barracks.

"This isn't over, gimp. I'll take care of you later".

Hiccup looked bored. "I'm sure you will".

Bentrel gave a final sneer before turning towards his bunk. Hiccup and Trayner watched him go. Hiccup kept his hand over Trayner's mouth because the younger boy couldn't stop giggling. "Quiet!" Hiccup hissed. "You'll spoil the surprise!" Trayner still couldn't stop giggling, in fact, it got worse. Hiccup rolled his eyes. _"Incorrigible" _he thought.

Bentrel reached his bunk and turned the handle to open the closet behind it. As he pulled the door open, he was hit full in the face with a torrent of water. Sputtering, he looked up at his closet to see an empty bucket secured on a hinge at the top of the door. His jaw dropped in surprise when he realized someone pulled a prank on him! He thought; _"How DARE they! Don't they know who I am? Don't they have any respect for the Ranking? I'll find out who did this and when I do they will PAY!"_ He started stomping around his bunk screaming in rage as Hiccup and Trayner were rolling on the floor in hysterics. Jencis ran into the barracks, took one look at what happened, heaved a sigh, and went to see if Bentrel was injured.

"Apprentice Bentrel, are you all right?"

Bentrel whirled on him ready to lash out, but stopped when he saw the knots. "All right? Of course I'm not all right! What kind of stupid question is that?"

Jencis scowled and said in a voice of pure ice; "I suggest you back off and change the tone of your voice, Apprentice Bentrel. You forget who you're speaking to. Would you like two weeks of water rations to remind yourself of your place here?"

Bentrel seemed to consider it for a moment and visibly deflated. "I apologize, Journeyman. I forgot myself there for a moment".

"That's better, now calmly tell me what happened".

"Someone set up my closet to dump a bucket of water on me! Now, look at me, I'm soaked! I want the ones responsible for this whipped and expelled!"

Jencis shook his head and said; "You are not the one who determines whether or not someone is whipped or expelled, only the Mastersmith can do that. I don't see any Master's knots on your shoulder APPRENTICE Bentrel, so you have no say in handing out punishments. Besides, who exactly ARE we going to punish? Anyone in this barracks could have set that up".

Bentrel looked around the barracks. Most everyone was laughing now, but Hiccup and Trayner were still in hysterics. He pointed at Hiccup and Trayner.

"THEM! It was THEM, Journeyman. They were here in the barracks before everyone else so it had to be them!"

Jencis walked up to Hiccup and Trayner and asked them; "Well, did you do this?"

Hiccup wiped tears from his eyes, stood up straight, and said; "I cannot tell a lie, Journeyman" He paused for dramatic effect and said; "I most certainly did!" At which he broke down laughing again.

Jencis shook his head and told them; "That will be three days water rations for the both of you". Hiccup merely waved acknowledgement, as he still couldn't speak.

Bentrel was beside himself; "That's it? Water rations? For what they did to me? It's not enough! I tell you, it's not enough!"

Jencis told him; "It is OVER apprentice! You will do NOTHING or you will be the one taking punishment! And it won't be coming from me!"

Bentrel started sputtering; "But...but...it's not enough! They do THIS to me! The punishment is not enough! I ask for Resolution!"

The whole barracks, including Hiccup and Trayner, stopped laughing when they heard these words. Conflict resolution, or just Resolution as it's called nowadays, was set up in the early days of the Smithcrafthall. Working there was dangerous enough, but if someone has a grievance with someone else and they started fighting on the workshop floor, someone could get seriously maimed or killed. So, every rest day, a ring was set up outside on days without threadfall. The two who have an argument are given a choice of boxing or wrestling, climb into the ring, and go at each other until one either gives up or is knocked unconscious. There are rules and a referee, but it allows combatants to vent their frustrations out on each other with nothing but a few bruises to show for it.

Jencis asked him; "Resolution? Are you sure? And who exactly are you going to face off against? There ARE two of them, you know".

Bentrel said; "Of course I'm sure! I want this!" Then he pointed to Trayner; "I want to face off against him! The type of battle will be wrestling!" He had an evil grin on his face. _"I'll snap the little wimp in half before the referees could stop me"_ he thought.

Hiccup nearly spoiled his fun when he held up his hand and said; "Excuse me, Journeyman Jencis, but I was the one who actually set up the prank, so I should be the one to face off against Bentrel".

Trayner hissed to him; "Are you nuts, Hiccup? What do you think you're doing?"

Hiccup whispered back and winked; "Trust me, I know what I'm doing".

Bentrel scoffed; "Fine, fine, I'll take the gimp instead. Hope that foot is attached good gimpy, because I'm going to make you eat it!"

Hiccup shook his head and said loudly so everyone could hear; "Hey, Trayner, be sure to bring the salt, it looks like I'll be having fake foot for dinner that night". The entire barracks laughed out loud at his remark.

o0o0o0o

That restday promised to be a clear, bright day. Threadfall was three days earlier, so the Resolution matches went on as planned. The ring was set up in the central courtyard and tiers erected so everyone could watch. Betting was discouraged, but a lot of marks still changed hands. There were four matches that day, with Hiccup and Bentrel being the third to go. Once the first two matches were over, Hiccup took his place in the ring with Trayner in his corner.

"You SURE you know what you're doing?" Trayner asked him. "Bentrel is a pretty big guy. He could really hurt you if he gets a hold of you!"

Hiccup remained calm. "Don't worry, Trayner, I've got it all under control. Besides, look at him. He's big, but it's all flab. He's probably never had to do a hard day's work in his life!"

Trayner looked across at Bentrel and watched as he threw fake punches at the air. Trayner shook his head and said; "I still think you're nuts".

Hiccup asked; "By the way, what are the odds?"

Trayner replied; "Three to one".

"You placed the marks as I asked?"

Trayner sighed; "You sure like to throw your money away. Yeah, I placed the marks. Fifty marks on you to win. Did I say you're nuts?"

"Several times. I get it, I'm nuts".

"Well, don't get that nutty brain of yours scrambled. You're one of the few friends I have here".

"Don't worry, I've got this under control".

"You keep saying that, but I'll believe it when I see it. There's the bell, good luck".

"Thanks".

Hiccup walked to the center of the ring. He was only half listening to the referee giving instructions. The rest of his attention was focused on his opponent. Bentrel was swinging at imaginary targets in the air, wasting energy and telegraphing his moves. Hiccup stood still with his arms by his sides, breathing slowly and deeply. He remembered back to the combat training he did with Astrid while Berk was snowed in last winter. _"Concentrate on your opponent's chest, all moves are telegraphed from there. Don't look at the arms and legs. By the time you see them moving, it's too late to react". _Hiccup flexed his shoulders once as he remembered her words.

The bell sounded again and Bentrel charged from his corner like an enraged bull. Hiccup deftly sidestepped and allowed him to pass harmlessly. Bentrel spun around snarling and charged again and Hiccup rolled his eyes. _"This is almost too easy"_ he thought. _"But, I better not get overconfident. He doesn't have to get technical to beat me. All he has to do is grab me and fall on top of me and I'm done". _Spinning around on his good foot Bentrel passed harmlessly again, but Hiccup gave him a boot in the rear with his false foot for good measure. Bentrel stopped, turned around and charged a third time, hoping to catch Hiccup off guard. Hiccup spun away and gave him another boot to the rear. Bentrel fell to the mat and got up screaming in rage and started chasing him around the ring. Even with his bad foot, he was able to easily stay out of his reach. The people in the audience were roaring with laughter and enjoying the show.

Bentrel was good and mad now. He stopped in a corner, took a deep breath, bellowed in fury, and charged at Hiccup a fourth time_._ _"This guy just doesn't learn" _Hiccup thought. This time, instead of stepping to the side, Hiccup allowed Bentrel's arms to reach him. Just before Bentrel could lock his fingers around his throat, Hiccup grabbed his wrists, fell backwards on the mat, placed his right foot in the center of Bentrel's chest, and used his momentum to throw him backwards into the ropes. Hiccup rolled over and sprung to his feet like a cat. Bentrel laid on the mat for a few seconds in a daze. Rolling over and getting to his feet slowly, Hiccup could see that he was in bad shape. He was breathing heavily and sweating profusely. The referee asked him if he wanted to quit and he just shook his head.

Hiccup shook his head slowly and said; "Tsk, tsk, tsk, that's what you get for stealing the younger apprentice's bubbly pies, Bentrel. They taste good, but all you get from eating too many is fat and out of shape. Come on, Bentrel, give it up. You can't beat me. Look at yourself, you can barely get a breath!"

Bentrel was wheezing as he said; "No..._wheeze_...way can..._gasp_...a one-footed..._wheeze_...gimp can..._gasp_...beat me!"

Hiccup shrugged and said; "Fine, have it your way". Beckoning him forward he said; "Let's finish this dance!"

Bentrel took a few seconds to catch his breath and instead of coming in slowly and trying to grab Hiccup, he charged forward _again. _Hiccup couldn't believe it. "_This guy has NO imagination!"_ he thought. Dropping sideways to the mat just in front of Bentrel, Hiccup used his right foot to trip him. As Bentrel fell face first to the mat, Hiccup rolled on top of his back, keeping Bentrel's ankle hooked in his leg. He said to him; "Now this is what is known as a pretzel. They're very tasty to eat, but they're not very nice when applied to your legs. Do you want to see what happens when I apply a little pressure, or do you want to give up now?"

Bentrel wheezed; "No..._gasp_...never!"

Hiccup sighed; "Fine, be that way" and proceeded to use his legs to put pressure on Bentrel's knee joints. Bentrel held out for a few moments, gritting his teeth through the pain, but finally tapped the mat in submission. The audience cheered when the referee announced the winner of the match. Hiccup released his hold, stood up, and walked to his corner to meet an enthusiastically cheering Trayner.

"You did it, you did it! I can't believe you beat that bastard! And you made it look easy!"

Hiccup took a drink from the bottle he was given and said; "It's always easy when you fight someone with no conditioning and no training".

Trayner said; "Well, you sure showed him that you're not someone to mess with!"

o0o0o0o

Three months after arriving on Pern, the postings for Journeymen were listed. Hiccup noticed that his name wasn't on the list and he told his friend Trayner.

"Aw, don't worry about it, Hiccup. I'm sure you'll make Journeyman next time".

"Yeah, but there are things going on NOW that I want to be part of!"

"Why? What's going on that's so important? What's the rush?"

"I'm not sure, but there have been a lot of visits by dragonriders lately. The Mastersmith has been spending a lot of time down at Landing. I suppose he's been talking with Aivas. We've also been working on some strange equipment".

"What do you mean by strange?"

"I've been assigned to forge metal rings that are sewn into the fabric of a suit of some kind. It's definitely not armor, the material is too thin to stop a sword, spear or arrow, but the Mastersmith said they are very important".

Trayner looked thoughtful; "Well, you'll figure it out, Hiccup, and you'll make Journeyman before you know it. Just you see!"

At dinner that evening, the postings for Journeymen were announced and chants of "Walk, walk" were heard throughout the dining hall. Hiccup thought the postings were done, but when the last name was read and the chants died down, the Mastersmith stood and called for silence.

"We of the Smithcrafthall have always been ready to serve in the best interests of Pern and its people. Those who are willing to work and put forth the effort to increase their base of knowledge and experience will be given the chance to prove themselves. Those who do not are passed over until they can show they can be trusted with the extra responsibility. In most cases, it takes time for an individual to mature enough to handle that responsibility. In very rare cases, an individual comes along who shows he has what it takes to excel. In those cases, it would be irresponsible on our part if we held them back simply because "they weren't here long enough". It is my pleasure to announce one more posting. Journeyman Jencis, would you do the honors?"

Jencis stood and bowed to the Mastersmith. He then walked around the tables and stopped behind Hiccup, who looked around with a bewildered look on his face. Trayner was beside himself with glee.

"Well, don't just sit there like a dimglow! Walk, Hiccup, walk!" Trayner started to chant, pounding the table with his mug. Hiccup stood and walked to the Journeyman tables as the Hall shook with the chant; "Walk, Hiccup, walk!"

o0o0o0o

Hiccup was working on forging some more replacement neck seal rings for spacesuits. He has been doing different jobs since his posting four sevendays ago and enjoyed every one of them. When he first got to his posting here in Landing, Aivas briefed him on the plan to eliminate the threat of Thread forever. Part of that plan involved repairing and fabricating four hundred spacesuits to protect the dragonriders in outer space. Hiccup thought it all pretty incredible and almost unbelievable, but if there was even the chance that this plan might work, Hiccup was determined to do his part.

Hiccup was walking from the caves where he was working and saw a blue fire lizard pop out of _between_ in front of him. Hiccup put out his arm, and as the blue landed on it, he could see that it was Sky! The blue chirped at him and held out his foreleg which had a message tied to it. Hiccup untied the message and gave Sky a bit of meatroll he had in his carisak. Sky chirped his thanks and disappeared _between. _Hiccup unrolled the message and saw it was from Trayner!

_"Hiccup, I've been Searched for the Telgar Hatching. Hatching Day should be in a sevenday. See if you can be here. If not, I'll come and see you on my own dragon! Your friend, Trayner"._

Hiccup folded the note and put it in his pocket. He sighed and thought; _"It would be nice to go see Trayner Impress, but I can't just call for a dragon to come get me. Besides, I've got things to do here!" _

The day of the Hatching, Hiccup heard the watchdragon bugle a greeting and heard the approaching dragon's reply. Hiccup went outside and was very surprised to see Meznith backwinging for a landing! B'net climbed down from Meznith's foreleg and smiled as he approached Hiccup.

"Hello, Hiccup. It is good to see you again".

* * *

><p><em>Whoa, another long chapter.<em>

_Toothless comes back in the next chapter (honestly, I promise)!_

_As always, use the blue link (blue, like Heimdall's eyes) below to leave a review. Thanks_


	7. Chapter 7 Impressions

**Chapter 7 - Impressions**

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><p><em><strong>AN: **Well, here it is, the long awaited return of Toothless. Enjoy!_

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

* * *

><p>"Hello again, Hiccup" brown rider B'net said. "I'm here to bring you as my guest to the Telgar Hatching. Would you like to come?"<p>

"Would I ever!" Hiccup answered. "Trayner sent a message by his fire lizard that he was Searched a sevenday ago and I'd like to see him Impress. When is the Hatching?"

"It could be anytime now. I thought you would want to come early to get a good seat. If we get there early enough, you could even get to meet your friend".

Hiccup turned back to where his riding gear was kept. "Great, just let me get my gear and we'll be off". Hiccup grabbed his jacket but thought it best he told someone in authority where he was going, so he sent out a mental summons. _"Heimdall, wake up. I need you to deliver a message to Mastersmith Fandarel". _Heimdall popped out of _between_ right in front of him and landed on his shoulder. Hiccup wrote a quick note to the Mastersmith; _"Master, I've been invited to Telgar Weyr for the Hatching. Will return to duties here in Landing once it's over. Hiccup"_.

Tying the note to Heimdall's foreleg, Hiccup gave him a mental picture of the Mastersmith. He then looked in Heimdall's eyes and said; "Heimdall, I won't be here when you get back from the Smithcrafthall. Find me at Telgar Weyr. You've been there before, remember?" Heimdall cheeped once, launched himself from Hiccup's shoulder, and disappeared _between. _Hiccup turned to B'net and said; "Okay, B'net, let's go". Taking his seat behind B'net and securing the riding straps, B'net gave the signal for Meznith to ascend. With two strokes of his powerful wings, Meznith lifted off from the ground smoothly and winked _between_.

Reappearing over Telgar Weyr, Meznith bugled his name and Hiccup heard the watchdragon's reply. They then descended into the weyr bowl and landed in front of the candidate barracks. Hiccup dismounted, thanked B'net and Meznith for the ride, and waited for Heimdall to arrive.

He didn't have long to wait, as Heimdall popped out of _between_ a minute later and flew to Hiccup's shoulder. Hiccup could see another message tied to Heimdall's leg. Untying the message, he noticed that it was from the Mastersmith. _"Will be attending as well. Save us some good seats". _Hiccup reached up and scratched Heimdall's head as he cheeped happily. "Yeah, buddy, I missed you too. You did a real good job. I'm glad to have a fire lizard as smart as you!" Heimdall purred happily and leaned into Hiccup's caresses. "Let's go see if we could find our friend, shall we?" Hiccup walked into the candidate barracks and looked around. Almost all the candidates were sitting on their bunks or talking in small groups. He went to one group and asked them; "Does anyone here know a candidate named Trayner?"

Several boys in the group looked looked irritated that someone was interrupting their conversation. Once they saw Hiccup's knots, however, their whole demeanor changed instantly. "His bunk is the last one on the right, Journeyman" a tall blonde haired boy said, pointing down the rows of bunks.

He turned to look in the direction indicated. "Thank you" he said and walked to the other end of the barracks. When he got there, he could see Trayner in his bunk lying on his stomach and reading a book.

"They say that if you read without enough glows to see by you'll go blind" Hiccup said as he walked up.

Trayner nearly fell out of his bunk in surprise. "Hiccup! I didn't think you'd make it! I heard they had you pretty busy down in Landing. How did you get here?"

"Brown rider B'net and Meznith came down and got me. You didn't think I'd miss seeing you Impress now, did you?"

"Well, I did think that the next time I saw you was when I came to see you on my own dragon, but I'm sure glad you're here". Heimdall leaned forward from Hiccup's shoulder and chirped a greeting to Trayner's blue fire lizard. Sky cheeped his answer back and bumped his head against Trayner's hand to let him know he wanted attention. Trayner scratched Sky's headknob, but sighed and gave Hiccup a half smirk. "It would be nice knowing I have a friend around".

"What do you mean by that? Don't tell me you've already made enemies here".

"No, no, it's not that. It's just that I brought my enemies with me".

Hiccup blinked twice and said; "Huh?"

"You haven't heard?"

"Heard what?"

Trayner sighed and said; "I wasn't the only one Searched".

Hiccup frowned for a second before he understood. He said; "Don't tell me..."

"Hey, gimp! Only candidates and the weyrlingmaster are allowed in here! Haven't you heard?"

Heimdall started hissing on his shoulder and Sky was hissing on Trayner's. Hiccup grimaced and looked at Trayner, who had a similar expression. Hiccup whispered; "Bentrel? They actually took HIM on Search?" Trayner nodded once with a pained look on his face.

"Hey, gimpy, are you deaf as well as cripple? I said this is a place where you don't belong. Now get out of here before I have you thrown out!"

Hiccup turned slowly and gave Bentrel a look that he usually reserved for things he scraped off the bottom of his shoe. Since he was no longer in the Smithcrafthall, he let loose with everything he wanted to tell Bentrel for the last few months. "Bentrel, I have absolutely no idea what I did to piss you off so much. I've tried being civil every time I come into contact with you, but you always seem to act as if someone peed in your klah when you're around me. Tell me, is it jealousy? You're the son of some muckity-muck holder, or so you tell us several dozen times every sevenday. Why should you be jealous?" Hiccup saw him looking at the knots on his shoulder. "Oh, is it these knots? Let me tell you something. Unlike you, I didn't have my knots given to me at birth. I EARNED THEM! I worked my butt off for them! But instead of actually putting in the effort to earn your own knots, what do you do? You start crying and complaining. _'Oh, woe is me! Hiccup got promoted before I did! I should have got it first because I was here longer and my daddy is an important man on Pern. Woe, woe, woe! Cry, bitch, moan, complain, etc, etc!' _Well, GET OVER IT! I'm glad you're here at the weyr because I don't have to take your crap anymore. But I better not hear about you bothering my friend Trayner. If you do, I'll come back and we can continue the session we had back at the Smithcrafthall, this time without referees, timeouts, or tapouts. Got it?"

When Bentrel walked up, he had the usual sneer on his face, but that gave way quickly to one of surprise. As Hiccup continued his tirade, the look changed to one of disbelief, then anger, and then rage. The veins stood out in his forehead and his whole body shook violently in the effort to keep from attacking Hiccup. Fighting was not allowed in the barracks and he didn't want to spoil his chance of Impression.

With teeth clenched he told him; "How DARE you say things like that to me! When I Impress the bronze dragon that I know is waiting for me, I'll outrank you and YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT! Now get out of here before I call the weyrlingmaster and have you thrown out!"

Hiccup put his hands up and said; "Okay, okay, don't pop a blood vessel, I'm leaving. I just came here to say hello to my friend". He then turned to Trayner, gripped his forearm as dragonriders do and said; "Good luck". Leaning forward to whisper in his ear he said; "Go ahead and Impress Bronze, that'll really boil his blood!" Trayner had to put his hand over his mouth to hide his smirk! Giving Bentrel a final glare, Hiccup brushed past him and went out into the weyrbowl.

Looking around for B'net, he was surprised to hear a low humming sound. Heimdall chirped once before he joined in as well. Hiccup looked at him and asked; "So, it's hatching time, huh?" Heimdall looked at him, chirped once in answer, and resumed humming. The humming seemed to shatter the calm of the weyr as people and dragons were running and flying in all directions. He decided to stay out of everyone's way, so he took refuge against the nearest wall.

He looked up as Meznith landed in front of him. B'net shouted down; "The eggs are hatching! Climb on and I'll take you to the Hatching Ground!"

He didn't need much encouragement. He stood on Meznith's foreleg and scrambled up behind B'net. When he started fastening straps, B'net shook his head and said; "Don't worry about the straps, we're only going on a short flight and Meznith won't let you fall". Meznith gave an encouraging rumble.

He held on tight as Meznith took off. To Hiccup's eyes, it looked as if Meznith was flying straight into the cliff wall! Before he had a chance to cry out, he could see that they were in a large cavern. Meznith landed on a ledge next to some stands overlooking a sandy part of the cavern floor.

Dragon Eggs! He couldn't help but stare at them. _"Bronze, brown, blue, green, no gold, and...black? That's unusual, I've never heard of a black dragon egg"_. Then his attention was drawn to the queen guarding them. She was HUGE! _"WOW! The dragons just keep getting bigger and bigger every time I see a new one!" _he thought.

"You can get a better view from over there" B'net pointed to the stands. "I'm sorry, but your little friend can't stay with you. He can view the Hatching from one of the ledges. I've got to go and collect some other guests. Try not to irritate Rennsith". Hiccup raised an eyebrow at this but B'net just smirked before Meznith lifted off again.

Hiccup scratched Heimdall on his headknob and told him; "Sorry, buddy, but you've got to go. You can watch the Hatching from up there". Hiccup pointed to a ledge where other fire lizards were gathered. Heimdall gave a sad little croon and his eyes were whirling yellow. "Yeah, I know, I don't like it either, but rules are rules. Go on now, I'll call for you when it's over". With a final chirp, Heimdall launched himself and flew to the indicated ledge, greeting other fire lizards as he settled himself.

Hiccup climbed down from the ledge and walked next to the sands. Rennsith's head came up and her eyes were whirling a little faster as she followed his movements. He stopped moving and bent forward at the waist. "Good day to you, Queen Dragon Rennsith" he said. _"Doesn't hurt to show a little respect". _Rennsith didn't reply, but her eyes were whirling a bit slower. She bowed her head slightly to him and then turned her full attention to her eggs.

Hiccup reached the stands just before dragons started showing up to deposit their passengers. He decided that now would be a good time to find a seat and chose one near the sands. _"This is kind of pointless" _he thought_. "I'd probably just be chased out of my seat by some minor lord holder who thinks he's entitled to it"._ As more and more guests were deposited by dragonriders, he sighed with relief when he saw Mastersmith Fandarel and Harper Cregan walking towards the stands. _"Heh, with the Mastersmith by my side, no one will want to contest the seating arrangements!" _Hiccup stood and waved them over. "Mastersmith, Harper, I've saved seats for both of you here in front".

Mastersmith Fandarel raised his hand acknowledging Hiccup and smiled; "Very good, Hiccup. I knew I could count on my favorite journeyman". Harper Cregan also raised his hand in greeting.

Hiccup blushed a little and took his seat. Fandarel and Cregan were shaking hands and chatting with acquaintances as they walked up and sat next to Hiccup. Just before he got settled, Fandarel stood and greeted the Telgar Weyrleaders as they walked up.

"Ah, R'mart and the lovely Bedella. Fine day for a Hatching, isn't it?"

R'mart had a bit of a frown and Bedella seemed to be under a lot of stress. Both of them brightened slightly at Fandarel's remarks. Bedella answered him; "Yes, it is a fine day, and it'll be even finer once it's over".

As they took their seats next to the Mastersmith, Cregan turned and asked them; "Why, is there something wrong with this Hatching?"

Bedella turned to him; "No, nothing wrong so far, but it's been a very stressful time ever since Rennsith's mating flight".

"I understand that she's a Benden dragon" Cregan remarked.

"Yes, she is" Bedella replied. "Falina and Rennsith transferred from Benden a turn and a half ago. She's had one clutch of eggs before this one".

"What happened that makes this Hatching so stressful?"

"A sevenday after her mating flight, we were supporting Ista's wings in an especially heavy threadfall over Nerat. Once the fall passed over water, Falina and Rennsith were flying sweep when, out of a clear blue sky, Rennsith was struck by lightning. She went _between_ and returned to Telgar. She was still in pain, so Falina called for someone to bring numbweed. Falina was concerned for the dragon embryos she knew Rennsith carried, but noticed the wound in her midsection was only a surface burn. It was nothing like thread which can bore deep into a wound and eat from the inside out. Once the burn was cleaned and numbweed applied, we all thought there would be no other problems".

"We realized something was different once Rennsith laid her eggs. Her previous clutch had thirty five eggs. The mating flight was very long, so we had no reason to believe that she wouldn't lay nearly the same amount. She DID lay thirty two, but eight of them turned black the next day. Rennsith said they were dead, so we took them _between_. On the fourth day, an egg we were sure would be a brown dragon also turned black. We were going to take it _between_, but Rennsith said this one was still alive. Three sevendays later, things got REALLY weird".

"Why? What happened?" Fandarel asked.

Bedella replied; "He started talking".

Fandarel, Cregan, and Hiccup turned to look out on the sands. Sure enough, the black egg laid off to the side separate from the other eggs. _"It's pretty large, so maybe it really is a brown dragon"_ Hiccup thought.

Cregan said; "Talking? Is that even possible with an unhatched dragon? What did he say?"

Bedella shrugged; "Not much, screaming and shrieking mostly. Saying things like, 'Get away' and 'You're not my rider' and 'I don't know you'. He mostly did that when we allowed the candidates to touch the eggs. After that happened a few times, none of the candidates would go near it".

Cregan asked; "And how did you know this? Did Falina tell you what was said?"

"She didn't need to" Bedella said. "All the queens could hear him".

Cregan looked at the black egg and whistled. _"That's going to be one powerful dragon"_ he thought. He turned to Bedella and asked; "Has he said anything lately?"

Bedella nodded and said; "Just one thing; 'He's here'".

"When did he say that?"

"When the guests arrived" Bedella looked around the stands at the other guests. "I think we're going to see an Impression from the stands". Hiccup, Cregan, and Fandarel looked around as well.

Fandarel laughed and said; "Well, it wouldn't be a Hatching if something unique didn't happen. Look, here come the candidates! There's Trayner and Bentrel. It would be nice if they both Impressed, eh Hiccup?"

Hiccup nodded, but all his hopes were riding on his friend, Trayner.

As he watched the candidates sort themselves out, Hiccup began to notice a buzzing in the back of his brain. He first thought it was the result of the dragon's humming, but he was beginning to think that someone or something was trying to talk to him. As the candidates stood in a semicircle around the eggs, the buzzing in his brain intensified and Hiccup could feel as if something was forcing itself into his mind. The sensation wasn't painful, just totally strange.

All the eggs were rocking now and Hiccup could actually hear the words in his mind; _:You're here! At last, you're here!:_

_"Huh?"_ Hiccup thought. _"Who said that? Are you a dragon?" _

Hiccup could 'hear' mental laughter._ :Of course I'm a dragon, dimglow. How else can I be speaking to you like this?:_

Hiccup looked around at the gathered dragons on the ledges above. _"Which one are you? I don't see you"._

_:That's because I'm still...urg...trying to...rrg...break out of this...ungh...fardling tough shell!:_

Hiccup's jaw dropped._ "You're a HATCHLING?"_

_:Well, not yet, but I'm...rrgh...working on it:_

Hiccup couldn't believe it, a dragon wanted him! And it was speaking to him even before it hatched! He wondered if it was the black egg speaking to him. His attention was focused on the black egg which was rocking in earnest now, so he never noticed the other eggs hatching on the sands. Dragon hatchlings were wandering the sands, crying and trying to find their lifemates. A large blue hatchling walked past the candidates and approached the stands. He made his way straight for Hiccup who never even saw him coming. Fandarel tapped him on the arm to get his attention.

"Hiccup, I think that dragon wants you!"

Hiccup turned to look where the Mastersmith was pointing to see a blue dragon looking at him with rainbow colored eyes. Hiccup felt his voice in his mind.

_:Hello, my name is...: _

_**:NOOOOO!**: _

The blue shrieked and recoiled as he felt the mental screech. Simultaneously, the black egg shattered, sending bits of shell flying everywhere. As candidates, hatchlings, and guests were covering up to avoid being hit by shell fragments, a strange looking black dragon hatchling ran across the sands, hissing and snarling at the blue.

_:**GET AWAY FROM HIM!** This one is **MINE!** Go over that way, there's still more to choose from!: _

The blue scrambled away and ran straight into the arms of Trayner. He looked up with tears in his eyes and said to the crowd; "He says his name is Granth!"

Hiccup tuned it out and didn't even hear his friend Impress. His thoughts were totally focused on the black infant dragon running towards him. He ran from the stands to meet his new dragon. Kneeling on the hot sand, he lifted the dragon's head and was fully enraptured by rainbow colored eyes.

_:I couldn't let Granth have you, not after I've found you again:_

Hiccup blinked; "What do you mean, 'again'? This is the first time I've met you".

The hatchling rubbed his head against Hiccup's chest and said; _:Hiccup, you know me. Don't you even recognize me?:_

Hiccup lifted the young dragon's head and really looked at him. His eyes were the same as all Pernese dragons and fire lizards, but the shape of the head was different. He did have the elongated snout, but the headknobs were missing. He also had two elongated ear lobes, where Pernese dragons had none. The top of the head, neck, front of the torso, the leading edges of the wings, and the base of the wings were covered in black scales. His wings were much bigger than any of the other hatchlings. Where he was not covered by black scales, the rest of his body was an extremely dark shade of brown. The overall effect was very striking.

What made Hiccup realize that he DID know this dragon was when he got to the tail. This one had a forked tail like all dragons of Pern, but on either side of the fork was a pair of tail fins!

Hiccup was choked with emotion. Blinking back tears he whispered; "T-Toothless? Is that r-really you?"

In response, the small dragon launched himself at Hiccup's chest, knocking him over and licking his face. _:I told you that you knew me!:_

Hiccup was VERY glad to be reunited with his dragon, but he had a more pressing concern as he yelped in pain; "OW, OW, Hot sand! Get off me, Toothless! Let me up!"

_:Oops, sorry about that. Are you okay?:_

"Yeah, nothing a little numbweed won't cure. I'm REALLY glad to see you again, buddy".

_:Same here, but straighten yourself up and brush yourself off. Here comes some people who look important:_

Hiccup turned back to the stands to see Mastersmith Fandarel, Harper Cregan, Weyrleader R'mart, and Weyrwoman Bedella walking towards him. Fandarel and Cregan smiled and patted him on the back. The Weyrleaders just looked relieved.

"Congratulations Hiccup, or should I say H'cup since you're a dragonrider now" R'mart said to him.

H'cup blinked in surprise; "H'cup? You just contracted my name?"

R'mart smiled and said; "That is the honorific bestowed on new dragonriders when they Impress. Another part of Impression is having you telling us the name of your dragon".

H'cup said; "Oh, I'm sorry. My dragon's name is Too..."

_:No:_

H'cup looked at Toothless and asked; "What was that?"

_:I said, no. Toothless is the name I left behind on our old world. This is a different world and I am a different dragon. Just as you now have a new name, I have a new name as well:_

"Okay, what is your new name?"

_:You're a smart boy, figure it out:_

H'cup mumbled; "Great, not even an hour old and my dragon is playing guessing games with me".

_:Come on, H'cup, it's not that hard. Just think of my old name in Norse and add a Pern twist to the end. Ta-da, my new name!:_

A slow grin crossed H'cup's face as he told his dragon; "I got it. Are you sure you want that as your new name?"

_:Yep:_

H'cup turned to the Mastersmith, the Harper, and the Weyrleaders. Holding his head high as a proper dragonrider should, he said;

"His name is Tannluth".

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><p><em>Well, there you go, reunited at last.<em>

_In case you're wondering, I changed Toothless's name to Tannluth because Toothleth sounded too weird!_

_Now you can see what you get when you merge an embryonic Pern brown dragon with the DNA of a Night Fury. I got the idea from the movie, The Fly with Jeff Goldblum._

_As always, please use the button below and leave a review on the site. Reviews make Heimdall, Tannluth, (and me) very happy!_


	8. Chapter 8 Bonding

**Chapter 8 - Bonding**

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><p><em><strong>All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.<strong>_

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><p>H'cup started to answer a question from Harper Cregan when he felt something push his leg. He turned his gaze to the strange looking brown and black dragon hatchling standing beside him.<p>

"What is it Tannluth?"

_:H'cup, the only thing that's keeping me from gnawing on your leg as a snack is the fact that I love you and I can't live without you. I am VERY hungry! Can we find something to eat? Maybe some nice fresh cod?:_

H'cup could see that his blue eyes were whirling with yellow streaks. He answered; "I don't think they have any cod here, buddy. I'm pretty sure they've got some cut-up herdbeast for you, though".

Tannluth sniffed; _:Whatever. I just need something to fill my belly:_

H'cup laughed; "You're worse than Heimdall when he hatched!"

Tannluth turned his head to look up at him. _:Heimdall?:_

"Yeah, he's my bronze fire lizard". H'cup raised his arm. "Heimdall, come down here and say hello".

Heimdall flew from his perch and landed on H'cup's outstretched arm. He leaned forward and chirped a greeting to Tannluth.

"Tannluth, this is Heimdall. Heimdall, this is my new dragon, Tannluth".

Tannluth lifted his head and sniffed the bronze fire lizard. Heimdall recoiled at first, but he leaned forward and chirped at his larger cousin and rubbed his muzzle on Tannluth's nose. Tannluth rumbled in draconic laughter and licked Heimdall's face. Heimdall reacted by climbing up to H'cup's shoulder, chittering and scolding as he rubbed his face on H'cup's tunic.

_:I like him:_

H'cup laughed at the antics of his two friends. "Just make sure you don't like him as dinner!"

_:Pffft! HIM? He would barely be able to fill the space between my teeth, much less the empty place that resembles my stomach. I think I'll just keep him around as a friend:_

"Why, that's very magnanimous of you".

_:Thank you. And now, the food?:_

"Oh, yeah". Turning to R'mart, H'cup asked; "Weyrleader, where do I go to get Tannluth something to eat?"

"Right this way". R'mart led them to a room connected to the hatching cavern by a short tunnel. When they got there, H'cup could see the other new weyrlings feeding their lifemates. An older brown rider gave him a bucket of meat. Tannluth tried grabbing a mouthful by shoving his whole head in the bucket, but H'cup snatched it away. Tannluth hissed as his eyes turned yellow.

_:HEY, Give that back! That's mine!:_

H'cup put his hand on the side of Tannluth's head and started stroking him. "Yes, it is yours, and you're going to eat it all, but you are NOT going to inhale it. Remember, you're not a big, strong, fierce, Night Fury anymore. You're a young Pern dragon who just hatched a few minutes ago. You'll get bigger, but for now your gullet is very small and you can choke easily. So, small bites and chew before swallowing, it'll go down easier. Alright?"

Tannluth's eyes turned back to blue as he said; _:Alright:_

H'cup grabbed a handful of meat and popped it into Tannluth's open mouth. As he was chewing, Tannluth said; _:Hmmm, not bad, not bad at all. Definitely not cod, but I think I like it!:_

"The staff of this establishment are pleased to see that the cuisine meets with your approval, sir" H'cup said.

Tannluth rumbled with amusement. _:Smartass. Just give me some more of that meat, will you?:_

H'cup laughed as he gave his friend another handful. As Tannluth chewed, H'cup looked around the room at the other dragonrider pairs. He saw his friend Trayner and his blue dragon Granth a few tables down from him. Trayner had a look of absolute bliss on his face as he fed his new friend. _"I know how he feels"_ he thought.

He turned his head and looked at the other end of the room. What he saw made his jaw drop in surprise. _"Bentrel? Did he actually IMPRESS?" _Sure enough, Bentrel was leaning against a table with a very large green dragon hatchling in front of him. _"That's going to be a BIG green when she grows up. I'm sure Bentrel is very proud"_. However, when H'cup looked at his face, he could see that Bentrel was anything BUT proud. H'cup could see the expressions of joy the other weyrlings had on their faces. Not so with Bentrel. His look was one of bewilderment and scorn. _"That's odd, you'd think he'd be happy to Impress. Oh, well, hopefully his dragon will bring him around. She obviously saw SOMETHING in him or she wouldn't have chosen him". _

H'cup's reverie was interrupted by something bumping his leg. _:Excuse me. Sorry to interrupt your thoughtful meditations, but you've got a STARVING DRAGON here!:_

"Oh, sorry about that, Tannluth. Here you go" H'cup said as he tossed another handful of meat into Tannluth's open mouth.

_:That's better, much better:_ Tannluth said as he chewed. _:What were you looking at?:_

"The other dragonrider pairs. After all, we ARE going to be living and working with them. Might as well see who's paired up with who".

Tannluth looked around and snorted. _:Meh, I already know the other dragons. As far as their riders, none of them interested me at all. I felt some of them touching my shell before I hatched and told them to get away from me:_

"Yeah, I meant to ask you about that. Weyrwoman Bedella told us what you said while you were still in your shell. Why would you do that?"

_:You have to ask?:_

"What do you mean?"

_:I was waiting for YOU, H'cup. I had a feeling that you came to this world with me and if you weren't at the Hatching Ground, I would have left it to go find you. None of the other candidates were good enough, I only wanted you!:_

Tannluth rubbed his head against H'cup's thigh. H'cup smiled as he felt the love coming from his dragon. He reached down and scratched Tannluth's chin as he closed his eyes and crooned in pleasure. H'cup grabbed another handful from the bucket.

"More meat?"

Tannluth opened his mouth. _:Certainly:_

H'cup tossed more meat into Tannluth's hungry maw. As he chewed, H'cup asked him; "Tannluth, you said that you had a feeling that I came to this world with you. Do you remember what happened and how you wound up in a Pern dragon egg?"

_:Well, I can't say how I wound up in an egg, but I can tell you what happened to me:_

"Go on"

_:Just keep the food coming and I'll tell you:_ H'cup told him no problem. _:We were descending for a landing on the beach when we were hit by one of the lightning bolts, remember?:_

"I remember descending, but not getting hit by lightning. I blacked out and woke up here. I had to figure it out later. The strange thing is, that wasn't lightning that hit us. It was some kind of matter transferral device that went awry, snatched us out of our world, and brought us here to another planet and another time".

_:You figured all that out on your own?:_

"No, Aivas filled in a lot of the details".

_:Aivas?:_

"A sentient computer the original colonists brought with them when they came to Pern".

_:What's a computer?:_

"Never mind, I'll explain later". H'cup threw another handful of meat into Tannluth's mouth. "Back to your story".

_:Right. As I was saying, we were hit by lightning, or the matter transferral...thingie. Anyway, whatever we were hit with, it cut my head off at the neck. Believe it or not, it didn't kill me and I never lost consciousness:_

H'cup's eyes grew wide. "How is that possible? Whenever you cut someone's head off, they die instantly".

Tannluth scoffed as he chewed on a new handful of meat; _:With humans, animals, and most dragons that is true, but that's not the case with dragons you call Night Furies. You see, we have another, smaller heart at the base of our skull. Since we spend most of our lives around water and survive by fishing, it helps to keep our brains oxygenated on long dives hunting for fish:_

"Huh, I never knew that".

_:Most people and dragons don't. We tend to ignore it:_

"Interesting. Continue, please".

_:Like I said, my second heart kept me alive and conscious, so I felt everything going on around me. There was a moment of incredible heat and pain, and then we were in a dark place. There was absolutely nothing there, no light, no heat, just cold blackness. For an instant I still felt you on my back, but we were separated a moment later. I tried moving myself to get you back and that is when I fully realized the rest of my body was gone. I couldn't get a breath or move my limbs or even turn around to look at myself. There wasn't much pain from my wounds because the heat closed everything off, but I still felt myself slowly dying. Whether it was from the wounds or from being apart from you I'm not sure, but I was prepared to give up this life:_

H'cup had tears in his eyes upon hearing the pain his friend went through, but he wanted to hear the rest of this. Throwing another handful of meat into Tannluth's mouth he asked him; "Then what happened?"

Tannluth chewed his meat and said; _:Just as I was about to give up, I came out of the cold, dark place and found myself in a warm, dark place. It was still as dark as the previous place, but something about it was inviting and familiar. I felt that I wasn't dying anymore, that something was changing within me. I could feel the presence of other dragon minds around me, but I couldn't talk to them at that time. I spent most of the time sleeping as there was nothing else to do. Later on I found that I COULD talk to the minds around me and I reached out to the closest one. Her name was Rennsith and she said she was the queen who laid my egg. She told me all about Pern and how the dragons are born to fight Thread, whatever that is:_

H'cup shivered at the mention of Pern's dreadful menace. "Thread is nasty stuff that falls from the skies and eats anything organic that it touches. Dragons fly up to meet it in the air and torch it before it reaches the ground".

Tannluth gave a mighty belch. _:Whew, that felt better. I guess I'm almost full. Just a handful or two __more should do it:_

H'cup laughed and said as he gave him another handful; "Here you go, buddy" then asked him as he was chewing; "So, what happened after you started talking to Rennsith?"

_:Not much, you already know most of it. I didn't like the presence of the other candidates and I told them so. I would also talk to the other hatchlings. Their minds weren't fully developed yet, but they WERE aware of who they were and of the things going on around them. The time for hatching came near and I was starting to feel depressed that something actually happened to you and you weren't going to come. I was elated when I felt your presence come into the Hatching ground and I cried out with joy. I don't think you heard me at first, so I cried louder and louder. It was when I said 'You're here' that you finally responded. You don't know how happy that made me, H'cup. Knowing that after all this time apart, that I was finally going to be reunited with my rider:_

Tannluth stood on his hind legs, wrapped his forepaws around H'cup's chest, and draped his head over one shoulder. H'cup had tears of joy in his eyes as he felt his dragon's love and affection. He wrapped his arms around Tannluth's torso and embraced him as well. After a few moments passed, Tannluth broke the embrace, sat back on his haunches, and opened his mouth for more meat. H'cup dutifully took a handful and tossed it in.

"Almost done?" he asked as Tannluth chewed.

_:Almost. One more handful ought to do it:_

"Good thing too, the bucket's nearly empty".

"That's because we fill those buckets based on your dragon's size". The brown rider who gave H'cup his bucket earlier walked up and introduced himself. "L'tan, Assistant Weyrlingmaster, rider of brown Wairth. I've never seen a dragon quite like yours. What color would you say he is?"

H'cup started to speak when Tannluth blurted out; _:I want to be called a black dragon, H'cup. I know I'm mostly brown, but I'm different enough from all the brown dragons of Pern to be called one:_

H'cup looked at L'tan and said; "Tannluth says he is a black dragon, Assistant Weyrlingmaster. So, that makes me black rider H'cup".

L'tan laughed and clapped H'cup on the shoulder. "Very good, black rider H'cup, and call me L'tan". Still chuckling, L'tan walked away to check on other weyrlings.

As Tannluth finished the last of his meal, he gave another huge belch and then yawned.

_:Oh, my, that was a most excellent meal! I think I'm going to like herdbeast after all. Now, I think I want to take a little nap:_

"Yeah, I've read that young dragons will do nothing but eat, sleep and grow early on, so we better get used to the cycle".

Tannluth was too sleepy to argue; _:Whatever, just show me where I could lay down for a bit, I'm really tired:_

H'cup led him to the weyrling barracks and found a spare bunk. Tannluth climbed onto the platform next to it, curled his head next to his torso, covered his head with one of his wings, and instantly fell asleep. H'cup sat by his side for a few minutes stroking his hide. He suddenly remembered that he left his things down at Landing. Picking Heimdall off his shoulder, he laid him next to Tannluth and stroked his bronze hide.

"Heimdall, buddy, I'm going down to Landing to get a few things. Stay here and take a little nap with Tannluth to keep him company, okay? I'll be back in a little while". Heimdall looked at Tannluth, looked back at H'cup, and chirped once as he laid down next to the black dragon. H'cup stroked his head and said; "Good boy".

H'cup left the weyrling barracks and walked outside into the bright sunlight. Squinting, he looked up at all the dragons sunning themselves on the ledges. _"Heh, that's a sight I'll never get tired of. Guess I'll be seeing a lot more of that". _Looking around for a dragonrider, H'cup stopped a young man not much older than him with blue rider knots on his shoulder.

"Excuse me, blue rider, but could you have your dragon talk to Meznith and have his rider come here?"

The blue rider looked at H'cup's knots, smiled and said; "Certainly, Journeyman". His eyes unfocused and H'cup knew he was speaking to his dragon. "Ariath said that Meznith's rider is on his way".

"Thank you, blue rider". The young man left H'cup standing at the door to the weyrling barracks. He didn't wait long as he saw B'net exit the main cavern and head in his direction.

"Hello Hiccup, or is it H'cup now? I saw you Impress, very unusual color for a dragon. I suppose that makes you a black rider?"

H'cup smiled and said; "Yes, you got it right on all accounts, B'net. It's H'cup now and yes, I am a black rider!"

B'net laughed and gripped H'cup's forearm as a fellow dragonrider; "Well, congratulations are in order then. Was this the reason you wanted to see me?"

H'cup said; "No, the real reason I wanted to see you is that I need to go back down to Landing while my dragon is still asleep. I wanted to get there, get my things, and get back before Tannluth wakes up".

B'net frowned and said; "You know we have a Hatching Feast planned?"

"Yes, and that is one of the other reasons why I wanted to leave right now. We can go there and be back before the feast starts. Also, if I don't go now I may not get the chance once weyrling classes begin".

B'net looked thoughtful; "Good point, I remember how busy I was during my weyrling training. Wait a moment and I'll call Meznith". B'net's eyes unfocused as he called his dragon and Meznith landed a few moments later. B'net climbed on and directed H'cup to climb behind him. After securing the straps, Meznith lifted off smoothly and went _between_ as he cleared the weyr bowl.

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><p><em>That's it for now. As always, thanks for reading and use the blue button below to leave a review on this site. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, (and me) very happy!<em>


	9. Chapter 9 Tragedy

**Chapter 9 - Tragedy**

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><p><em><strong>All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.<strong>_

_A/N: Rated a strong T for character deaths, blood, and angst. You've been warned._

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><p>They came out of <em>between<em> over the Landing complex as Meznith bugled his name and H'cup heard the watchdragon's reply. Landing in front of the Smithcraft barracks, H'cup dismounted and asked B'net to wait for him. H'cup went in and started packing his things. As he worked on his last bag, his fellow Journeyman Jencis came up and asked what was going on.

"I'm leaving, Jencis. I'm taking my things and moving to Telgar Weyr".

Jencis couldn't believe his ears. "Hiccup, you're the best Journeyman around! You would most likely be promoted to Master within a few turns! Did something happen to make you want to quit?"

H'cup turned to his friend with a look on his face that Jencis didn't expect to see, happiness. He said; "Yes, Jencis, something did happen. The most wonderful thing in the whole world".

Jencis frowned at first and then a light seemed to go on behind his eyes; "Wait a minute, you went to the Weyr to watch the Hatching...Oh, shards, you went and Impressed, did you?"

H'cup smiled; "Yep, and I've got the absolute best dragon in the world!"

"So, what is your dragon's name, the color, and how is your name contracted now?" Jencis asked.

"My dragon's name is Tannluth, he's a black dragon, and my new name is H'cup".

"BLACK dragon? I've never heard of one of those".

"Nope, and you probably never will again. He's a one of a kind".

"So, you're giving up everything you've worked for over the last few months?"

H'cup stopped packing and looked at him. "It's not like I had much choice in the matter, Jencis. He wanted me and I had to accept. I'm only putting my Smithcraft duties on hold while Tannluth and I go through weyrling training. Once we're finished, I'm sure I could get back to smithing".

Jencis sighed; "Well, I'm sorry to see you go, H'cup, but like you said, you didn't have much choice". He held out his hand. "Good luck at the weyr and congratulations on your Impression".

H'cup took his hand and shook it. "Thanks, Jencis. You've been a good friend and a loyal comrade. I hope there's others at the weyr like you".

Jencis smiled and said; "Trayner's your friend and he was Searched, wasn't he? Did he Impress?"

H'cup grinned; "He sure did. Got a blue dragon named Granth". Then his smile faltered; "There was another Impression as well, the other person who was taken on Search from the Smithcrafthall".

"Who?"

"Bentrel".

"You're kidding, BENTREL Impressed?"

H'cup shook his head; "I wish I was kidding, Jencis, but I don't think Bentrel is too happy about Impressing a green. I saw the look on his face as he was feeding his dragon. If he doesn't change his attitude quickly I don't know what's going to happen but it can't be good".

Jencis shook his head. "I will never understand the ways of dragons. You be careful around Bentrel, or whatever he calls himself now. I wouldn't want to hear about anything bad happening to you".

"Thank you for your concern, Jencis. I'll be careful".

Jencis nodded once and started grabbing some of H'cup's effects. "Here, let me help you carry this out. Did you get it all?"

"Yep, I didn't have much personal stuff to start with. We mostly brought down equipment that has to stay here, so this is all I'll be taking with me".

Jencis walked with H'cup out to where Meznith was waiting. H'cup handed up his bags and B'net secured them to the harness. When the last one was secured, he turned to Jencis who extended his hand.

"So long, H'cup. Again, good luck on your new endeavor".

H'cup shook his hand and said; "Chin up, Jencis, this isn't farewell. I'll be around from time to time, but thanks for your well wishes".

Jencis smiled, pumped his hand once, and stepped back as H'cup took his place behind B'net. Once the straps were secure, Meznith lifted off with two strokes of his powerful wings and went_ between_ a moment later.

o0o0o0o

Three days later, H'cup was noticing some alarming changes in B'trel's behavior. Instead of having a mellowing influence, his link with his dragon actually made him more antagonistic. It certainly was no fault of his green dragon, Spreth. H'cup was bathing Tannluth when he looked over and saw B'trel berating his dragon after he finished washing and oiling her.

"Now, go lie down under that tree. I did a lot of work washing and oiling you and I don't want you to mess it up! Go on, now".

H'cup could see that Spreth tried caressing her rider, but B'trel just turned away and walked inside. Spreth walked to the indicated spot and plopped down, dejected and lonely. Tannluth crooned sadly in his throat.

_:H'cup, Spreth is very depressed. She loves her rider, but she feels he doesn't love her in return. Can we do SOMETHING to help her?:_

"What CAN we do Tannluth? The problem is with her rider. I thought her influence would bring B'trel around, but it doesn't look like it's helping".

_:Can we at least talk to her? I can ask to see if she will talk to you as well:_

H'cup sighed; "I guess it wouldn't hurt to try. You go over and talk to her while I get dressed". H'cup went to the weyrling barracks where he kept his dry clothes. Toweling himself dry, he sat down and took off the wooden leg he used while bathing Tannluth. Strapping on his regular one, he finished getting dressed and walked outside to meet Spreth. Walking closer to where she was lying in the shade, H'cup could see that she was in bad shape. Her skin was grayish and hanging loosely on her frame. There were also lesions on her skin where B'trel couldn't be bothered to clean and oil properly. The saddest, most heart wrenching thing of all was her eyes. H'cup couldn't think of a single time when her eyes were blue.

"Tannluth, will she talk to me?"

_:I'm not sure, H'cup. Try asking her:_

"Hello, Spreth. I'm H'cup, Tannluth's rider. It's nice to meet you".

Spreth didn't reply, just turned and looked at him with the saddest eyes he's ever seen on a dragon or ANY creature he's ever come across. H'cup swallowed hard and asked her; "Spreth, I'd like to help if I can, me and Tannluth both. Talk to me, please? Maybe I could do something for you".

H'cup heard her sigh. Very quietly, she said; _:I love him and I only want him to love me. Is that such a wrong thing to ask for?:_

H'cup nearly cried in anguish as he heard and felt her despair. Tannluth's eyes were whirling yellow with streaks of orange as he too reacted to Spreth's mental pain. Tannluth laid down next to her, humming and rubbing his head along her neck. H'cup sat at her head and was rubbing her eye ridges. Spreth seemed to cheer up a little, as her eyes were more of a green color instead of the constant yellow. She crooned in her throat as she looked at H'cup and licked his hand.

_:Thank you, both of you, that does make me feel a little better:_ Her eyes resumed their yellow state when she said; _:B'trel never did that for me:_

H'cup asked her; "Spreth, why did you choose B'trel? Didn't you sense how he was?"

Spreth gave a sad croon and said; _:No, not at the time of Impression. I saw B'trel's potential to be a great dragonrider, and I was attracted to that. I'm still hoping for him to realize that I love him and will do anything for him:_

H'cup was disgusted to think that B'trel would abuse such a sweet and loving dragon like Spreth. He started to say something else when he was interrupted by a shout from the main cavern.

"Hey, gimp! You and your freak, get away from my dragon!"

H'cup got to his feet as B'trel came storming out of the main cavern. Tannluth got up and stood by H'cup's side, hissing and flaring his wings. Spreth also stood and ran to B'trel trying to intercept him. H'cup could still hear her because she was pleading so loudly.

_:B'trel, please, please don't be mad, they were just talking to me:_ H'cup flinched as he heard her tone, it sounded like a whipped puppy.

B'trel had difficulty speaking through clenched teeth. "Talking to you? TALKING TO YOU! I'm your RIDER! I'm the ONLY one who should be talking to you! Now, go back to your spot, I'll deal with you later". Spreth turned away with her head hung low and her tail dragging. B'trel watched her go and advanced on H'cup.

By this time, nearly all the weyrlings and a few seasoned riders gathered to see what the fuss was all about. B'trel was about to get right in H'cup's face, but was stopped short by an angrily hissing and snarling Tannluth. B'trel looked scared for a moment, but smirked and laughed.

"What, you've got your freak of a dragon trained to attack now, gimpy?"

H'cup sighed and rolled his eyes; "B'trel, if you knew anything about dragons, and it's clear you don't, you'd know that Tannluth is only trying to protect me. I haven't trained him to do anything. Besides, I don't need him to take you on, I've already proven that at the Smithcrafthall. Would you like another sparring session as a reminder?"

B'trel removed his tunic in response. "You're on, gimpy! I've learned a few things since then! Just keep your freak away from me as I pound your head in the ground!".

H'cup turned to Tannluth and told him; "Buddy, I know it's hard, but you can't interfere. Just stay off to the side and I'll handle this".

Tannluth wasn't happy about that and said so; _:H'cup, I don't like this. I'm feeling pure poison coming from Spreth's rider's mind. He REALLY wants to hurt you!:_

H'cup put his forehead on Tannluth's muzzle and said; "I know, buddy, and I appreciate your concern, but I've dealt with him before. Remember when Astrid was training me and all the bruises I had when I came home?" Tannluth gave a little mental chuckle as he remembered. "Well, all that hard work and training paid off. Don't worry, I can take this guy!"

Tannluth sighed and said; _:All right, H'cup, I trust you. I won't interfere:_

H'cup turned to face B'trel, but before either one made a move they were interrupted by Spreth stepping in front of her rider. H'cup could hear her pleading with him.

_:B'trel, please don't do this. He could HURT you, and I can't stand to see you hurt:_

H'cup thought B'trel was angry at Spreth before, but that was nothing compared to how he was now. His veins stood out on his forehead as he screamed at his dragon; "GO AWAY! GET OUT OF HERE! I NEVER WANTED YOU! I WAS DESTINED FOR A BRONZE DRAGON! A BRONZE! BUT I GOT YOU INSTEAD!" As he was screaming, he whipped off his belt and raised it to strike Spreth. Other weyrlings, dragonriders, and H'cup were yelling for him to stop, but B'trel brought the belt down with all his might behind it. As the buckle slashed across Spreth's eye, she gave one final scream of pain, fear, and despair before disappearing _between. _B'trel could only stare stupidly at the spot where she stood a moment before. He sank to his knees and moaned as the dragons keened in tribute to the passing of one of their kind. H'cup also stared at the spot where Spreth was standing, but was still in control of his faculties.

"Tannluth, what just happened?"

Tannluth was still keening and it took a few moments for him to respond. When he did, his voice was full of pain and sadness; _:Spreth is no more, she went _between_ forever. She was in too much pain and wanted it to end. She knew her rider never wanted her and she didn't want to stay where she wasn't wanted:_

H'cup heard the moan from B'trel, no, it's Bentrel now, change to a low chant. He was repeating; "No, no, no, no". H'cup thought that was all he was going to say, until he got to his feet and turned to look his way. His chant changed from "No" to "You did it". Bentrel kept repeating it and increased the volume as he advanced on H'cup. Drawing his belt knife, he started yelling; "YOU did it! You and your freak dragon! It's your fault! YOU KILLED MY DRAGON! DRAGON KILLER! DRAGON KILLER! DRAGON KILLER!"

H'cup tried talking to him; "Bentrel, I didn't do anything to kill Spreth, I was just trying to help her!"

However, Bentrel was beyond reason; "I don't CARE about that sharding stupid green! Your FREAK was responsible for killing my bronze and seven other dragons! If he'd have never been born, then I would be a bronze rider now!"

H'cup thought; _"Is he insane? What the Hel is he talking about? Is this about the eight eggs that turned black when they were laid?"_ He said aloud; "Bentrel, there's no way to know if that was Tannluth's fault. There's also no way to know if one of those eggs was a bronze. Put the knife down, let's be reasonable".

Bentrel screamed in rage; "NO, IT IS YOUR DRAGON'S FAULT AND THEREFORE YOUR FAULT! YOU"RE RESPONSIBLE AND NOW YOU'LL PAY!"

Drawing his own belt knife, H'cup started backing away trying to keep some distance as he tried talking to Bentrel. He held his right hand up palm outward and said; "Bentrel, just calm down and put the knife away, we don't have to do this. Let us help you". H'cup withdrew his hand quickly as Bentrel snarled and made a wild slash at it with his knife.

Tannluth shrieked in fear for his rider and started forward. H'cup mentally shouted; _"Tannluth, NO! Stay where you are!"_

Tannluth's eyes were whirling orange and red in a combination of fear, anger, and worry. He told H'cup; _:H'cup, he wants to HURT you!:_

H'cup's gave a short bark of laughter. _"No, buddy, I don't think he wants to hurt me. I think he wants to kill me!"_

Tannluth nearly panicked; _:NO! I will kill HIM first! He can't take you from me! HE CAN'T!:_

H'cup kept his eyes on the advancing Bentrel as he talked to his dragon; _"Tannluth, don't try it. Yes, you could probably hurt him, but he will more than likely kill you. Please, just stay away and let me handle this!"_

Tannluth whimpered and stomped his feet, but gave in to H'cup's wishes. _:Very well, H'cup, but you better not lose!:_

H'cup held his knife flat against the outside of his left forearm so it could be used as a shield against a slashing attack. Judging by the way Bentrel held his knife, that is how he was going to come after him. Concentrating on his chest, H'cup waited for him to make his move. Bentrel lunged forward and aimed at H'cup's throat in a roundhouse cutting arc. H'cup lifted his left forearm and deflected it easily with the flat of his blade. Bentrel tried slashing at H'cup by swinging his arm in a backhand stroke, but H'cup ducked under his swing, changed his grip on his knife, and sprung forward swinging his knife in an upward diagonal arc. H'cup landed with most of his weight on his good foot and immediately spun around to reacquire his opponent, but he could see that Bentrel was finished. Blood was spurting out the side of Bentrel's neck as he slowly turned around. He had a bewildered look on his face as if he couldn't believe this was happening to him. Dropping his knife, he put both hands on his throat in an attempt to stop the flow, but it just poured through his fingers. Sinking to his knees, he looked at H'cup with a look of shock and confusion on his face. H'cup shook his head slowly and mouthed the words; 'I'm sorry'. Bentrel's eyes rolled back as he gave a last gurgling gasp before pitching face forward into a spreading pool of crimson.

H'cup picked up a spare cleaning rag, wiped the blood off his knife, and slid it in its sheath as he quietly said; "I never wanted this, Bentrel. I tried to help you and begged for you to stop. I hope you're at peace wherever you are". He turned around to look at the crowd of onlookers when he was hit full in the chest and knocked to the ground by an anxiously crooning black and brown dragonet. Tannluth laid on his chest and licked his face.

_:You're okay! You're okay! I'm SO glad you weren't hurt!:_

"_Ooof_, Tannluth get off of me! You're going to smother me!"

Tannluth moved off of him and allowed him to sit up. _:Sorry about that, I'm just REALLY glad he didn't hurt you!:_

"Yeah, me too, buddy, me too".

H'cup stood and looked around at the assembled onlookers. Almost all of them still had looks of shock and sadness on their faces. A few of them looked like they were going to be sick. He scanned the faces until he saw his friend T'yner who, unfortunately, looked like one of the sick ones. H'cup walked up to him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"T'yner, are you okay?" he was swaying and his face was pale. He was also still looking at the growing red spot around Bentrel's body. H'cup turned him around and guided him to the dining cavern. "Don't look at him! Come on, I'll get you something to settle you down". T'yner took two steps before falling to his knees and puking his guts out. H'cup put his hand on his back and waited for him to finish. When it seemed like the worst was over, H'cup pulled him to his feet and they continued on their way to the dining cavern. However, he stopped and turned when he heard his name being called.

"Rider H'cup! Come over here, please!" H'cup recognized the voice of Weyrleader R'mart.

T'yner said; "Go on, H'cup, I'll be okay. I'm feeling a little better, now".

"You sure?"

Wiping his chin, T'yner said; "Yeah, I'll live. Go on and tell him what happened. Remember, you've got plenty of witnesses".

H'cup put his hand on T'yner's shoulder as a gesture of gratitude and went to talk to the Weyrleader. Tannluth walked up and sat next to him.

"You wanted to see me, Weyrleader?" H'cup asked as he walked up.

R'mart turned away from examining Bentrel's body and asked him; "Yes, rider H'cup, I wanted to see you. What happened here? I heard the dragons keening and Branth told me that Spreth went _between_. I come down here thinking I'm going to have to deal with her distraught rider, but I see that the former rider of Spreth is lying facedown in a pool of his own blood. I've already heard other senior riders give their statements H'cup, now I'd like to hear yours".

H'cup cleared his throat and gave his version of the events that just transpired. When he was finished, R'mart nodded his head and said; "That is exactly the way the other witnesses say it happened. H'cup, you've done nothing wrong and the killing of Bentrel will be listed as self-defense. It's a shame that we couldn't save the pair of them. If we intervened sooner, we probably could have done something for Spreth, or at least see to it that she didn't suffer so much. You showed great initiative in trying to help her, H'cup. You will be a great asset to whatever wing you're assigned once you finish your training".

"Thank you, sir, but the credit for coming up with the idea to help Spreth should go to my dragon, Tannluth. He's the one who suggested we talk to her". H'cup stroked Tannluth's head, who crooned in appreciation.

"Tannluth, eh? Well, Tannluth, since you're here I can say this to you as well. Good job, both of you".

Tannluth bowed his head to show his thanks as H'cup said; "Thank you, sir".

R'mart bowed his head to the two of them and returned to his office. H'cup looked around for his friend T'yner. he saw him making his way to the dining cavern. he still looked shaky on his feet, so he went to help him.

"Tannluth, would it be okay if I left you alone for a little while? Maybe you can lie down in the sun with the other dragons".

_:Hmmm, that sounds nice. Are you going to help Granth's rider?:_

"How did you know I wanted to do that?"

_:I saw you helping him earlier. Go on, I'll be over here by the lake:_

"See you in a little bit, buddy". H'cup walked up to an unsteady T'yner and supported him by an elbow. "Come on, T'yner, let's get something in that empty stomach".

o0o0o0o

Making his way back across the bowl where he last saw his dragon, H'cup looked around the lake to try and find him. When he couldn't see him, he mentally called out; _"Tannluth, where are you?"_

_:Up here:_

H'cup looked at the ledge above the lake. Tannluth was lying there with his forepaws on the edge. He could see that Tannluth's eyes were yellow and whirling slowly. H'cup asked out loud; "How did you get up there?"

Tannluth pointed to his left with his muzzle; _:There's a sloping path over there, come on up if you want to:_

H'cup walked up the path and sat down next to his dragon. He simply said; "Hey".

Tannluth didn't look up but said; _:Hey:_

Tannluth was silent for a few minutes before he asked; _:H'cup, is there something wrong with me?:_

H'cup was shocked that his dragon would be feeling this way. "What? Shards no, Tannluth, there is absolutely nothing wrong with you! What would make you ask a question like that?"

_:Well, I heard what Spreth's rider called me and now several dragons are telling me that their riders are saying the same thing:_

"Are the dragons calling you names?"

_:No, no, it's not the dragons, just their riders. It's got me wondering if I'm a proper dragon. I'm just worried that I can't be a proper dragon for you since I'm so different:_

Tannluth's admission brought tears to H'cup's eyes. _"Oh my gods, he's afraid that I'm going to reject him like Bentrel rejected Spreth"_. Taking Tannluth's head in both hands, H'cup turned it so he was looking directly into his eyes.

"Tannluth, now you listen to me and you listen good. You ARE a proper dragon! I wouldn't have you any other way! Know also that I am NOTHING like Bentrel, understand? NOTHING! You are MY DRAGON, always have been, always will be. You were one of a kind back in Berk and you're one of a kind here on Pern. I loved you then and I love you now and I will never leave you, forsake you, or reject you. You are MINE, now and forevermore. Am I making my intentions clear to your scaly brain?

Tannluth's eyes were whirling a happy blue now as he lifted his head and licked H'cup on his face. H'cup laughed and pushed him away, but Tannluth wasn't done yet. Looking H'cup in the eyes, he made his own vow.

_:H'cup, this I promise you before all the dragons assembled here and under the stars in the skies above. You are MY RIDER, always have been, always will be. You are the only one of your kind in the universe, no matter where we are. I've loved you back in Berk, I love you here on Pern, and I will never leave you, forsake you, or reject you. You are MINE, now and forevermore. I will add this to my vow. I will do everything within my power to protect you and keep you safe, but if anything happens to you and you should die, I would live for only one second longer. That will be enough time for me to go _between_ forever and join you in the next life. I will NOT live if I have to live without you. Am I making myself clear to that hairy brain of yours?:_

H'cup laughed and said; "Silly dragon, my brain doesn't have hair on it!"

Tannluth joined in with his own draconic chuckle; _:And mine doesn't have scales on it, so there!:_

H'cup smiled as he sat beside his friend. "So, what do we do now?"

Tannluth thought for a moment and said; _:We live, we learn, we grow, we fight Thread, and we love each other for the rest of our lives:_

"That's it? That simple, huh?"

_:Yep:_

H'cup thought about it and nodded; "Sounds like a plan to me".

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><p><em>AN: A few notes and kudos_

_1. Special thanks to Pern Dreamer for allowing me to borrow a situation I first read of in Mara's Story. _

_2. I realize that the situation with Bentrel and Spreth would never happen on the real Pern, but I wanted a situation that would strengthen the bond between H'cup and Tannluth. _

_3. I also realize that Tannluth is unusually chatty for a Pern dragon, but remember that he still has the mind and memories of an older Night Fury._

_As always, thanks for reading and use the blue button below to leave a review on this site. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, (and me) very happy!_


	10. Chapter 10 Wake Up Call

**Chapter 10 - Wake Up Call**

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><p><em>AN: Just a silly idea I came up with. Something a little more lighthearted after the previous chapter. Enjoy.  
><em>

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p>It has now been three sevendays since H'cup Impressed Tannluth. Since the time he first stared into the rainbow eyes of his beautiful black dragon, his days have been structured as wake up, feed starving dragon, wash and oil itching dragon, attend classes to learn how to care for dragon, feed dragon again, take physical training to build endurance for flying on dragon, feed, wash, and oil dragon one more time, take more classes on flying in dragon formations, put dragon and himself to bed, then get up and do it all again the next day.<p>

The first sevenday was a bit overwhelming for some of the new weyrlings. If it wasn't for the fact that they could feel their lifemate's discomfort, some of them might have given up in exasperation. By the end of that sevenday however, they all had settled into the routine. It came as a bit of a shock and a small sense of relief when the incessant demands of the young dragons started to lessen by the third sevenday.

Weyrlingmaster M'dar had decided to let his young charges sleep late that restday morning. H'cup and the rest of his group were sleeping peacefully, unaware that Tannluth quietly roused all the dragons and led them outside. He made a short detour to the dining hall before returning to the barracks. Once inside, he climbed onto his platform next to H'cup's bunk, leaned in close, and gently blew air onto H'cup's face until he woke up. H'cup sat up and looked around.

"Hmnh, wuzzat? Wha...Tannluth? What's wrong? What's going on? Why did you wake me up? Are you hungry? Do you need anything?"

Tannluth sat on his platform and grinned. _:Nothing's wrong, H'cup, and I'm not hungry right now. It's just that it's a beautiful day outside and here you are sleeping it away in this stuffy barracks. Come on, let's get up and enjoy the sunshine!:_

H'cup let his head flop back down on his pillow. "Rrrgh, useless reptile!"

Tannluth scoffed; _:Dragon H'cup, DRAG-ON. Not a reptile. I don't do that tongue...thing:_ He then flicked his slightly forked tongue out and in. H'cup's narrowed his eyes at Tannluth and realized his dragon was joking when one whirling blue eye winked at him.

H'cup threw his sheet over his head and quietly grumbled; "Great, two thousand dragons on Pern and I happen to have the one who cracks jokes way too early in the morning!"

Tannluth pulled the sheet back with his teeth and said; _:Rise and shine, sleepyhead. C'mon, you're already awake. It's warm outside and the lake looks soooo inviting:_

H'cup grabbed the sheet and threw it back over himself. "Tannluth, today is a rest day. Do you understand the concept of REST? Well, that's exactly what I'm going to do this morning. I'm going to lie in this bed and REST, catch up on my lost sleep, and get up when I'm good and ready!"

Tannluth smirked; _:Oh, I think you'll be getting up a lot sooner than you realize:_

"What do you mean by that?"

Tannluth didn't reply, he just peeled his lips back to show H'cup his teeth. H'cup wasn't intimidated at all because Tannluth's eyes were still blue, so he knew this wasn't a threat display. He was curious as to why Tannluth would show his teeth, so he looked closer and noticed some red stringy residue that wasn't herdbeast stuck between his teeth.

"Umm, Tannluth, is that redfruit?"

_:Uh-huh:_

"Do you remember what happened the last time you HAD redfruit?"

_:Uh-huh:_

"And you ate some today on purpose?"

_:Uh-huh:_

"Then why are you still in here...no".

_:Yes:_

"Oh, noooo".

_:Oh, yessss:_

"You wouldn't!"

_:Try me:_

"Tannluth, no, please? Not in here, not in the barracks".

_:H'cup, you have two choices. Either you get out of bed and wake up everyone else, get everyone dressed for a morning swim, and come to the lake in an orderly fashion where I will take care of my business OUTSIDE. OR I can take care of business INSIDE and make you and everyone else in this barracks scramble out of bed and into the sunshine dressed in your nightclothes. Your choice, I leave it entirely up to you:_

H'cup sat up, strapped his leg on, and got dressed. He told Tannluth quietly; "Okay, Tannluth, I'll go outside with you, but I'm NOT going to wake up everyone else!"

Tannluth stood his ground; _:Nope, that's not the deal, H'cup. It's either everyone in order or everyone __in chaos:_ Tannluth's stomach rumbled ominously. _:You better amend your decision quickly, I may not be able to hold back much longer:_

H'cup went across to T'yner's bunk; "At least let me wake up my friend, then we'll see about everyone else".

Tannluth shook his head and walked to the center of the barracks. _:Sorry, H'cup, I gave you a chance to wake everyone up your way, now let's try mine!:_ His stomach rumbled again as he lifted his leg.

H'cup yelled in horror; "What? TANNLUTH, NO!"

"_BRRRRAPPPP_!"

Tannluth walked casually out of the barracks as he continued to expel the accumulated fumes. H'cup's eyes grew wide as he yelled to T'yner; "T'yner, deep breath, NOW!" Both of them drew deep breaths and ran outside. Once there and sure they were clear of the noxious cloud, they breathed out and took in a breath of fresh air. H'cup could hear yells and screams from the barracks.

"Shards and shells! What died in here?"

"Ewww! That's gross!"

"MY EYES! MY EYES ARE BURNING!"

"To hell with your eyes! My nostril hairs are melting!"

The rest of the weyrling class scrambled out of the barracks, coughing and fanning their faces in an attempt to get fresh air. One of the bronze weyrlings exclaimed loudly; "What in Faranth's name just happened? Did someone leave something dead in the barracks?"

H'cup looked around for the source of the trouble. Tannluth was in a group with the rest of the weyrling dragons. The greens and the blues were anxious for their riders because their eyes were slightly yellow, but they stayed where they were. The browns and the bronzes, however, seemed to be amused by what happened. Their eyes were blue and whirling happily. The biggest shock to H'cup was when he saw Tannluth. He couldn't see his eyes because they were closed. He was also rolling back and forth on his back and making quiet roars in his throat. When he opened his mind to the link they shared, H'cup could 'hear' Tannluth absolutely roaring with laughter. H'cup walked over to him shaking his head.

"I'm glad you find this amusing".

Tannluth stopped for a moment, opened one eye to look at H'cup, then closed it again and continued laughing.

_:Hahahaha. Oh, my, hehehe. Oh, the looks on your faces! I wish my brothers and sisters could remember it always! I know I will!:_

"You will remember this later?"

_:Of course! There's nothing wrong with MY long-term memory!:_

"Hmmm, I guess that comes from your Night Fury brain. By the way, are you finished with gassing everyone out of their homes?"

_:I didn't gas EVERYONE out of their homes, just you and your group:_ Tannluth started chuckling again at that thought.

H'cup was shaking his head at the antics of his dragon as T'yner walked up and asked; "Did Tannluth do that? I took a breath when you told me to, but I was only half awake and didn't hear what happened before. Why would he do something like this?"

H'cup shrugged his shoulders; "What can I say? He thinks it's funny. He's still laughing about it now".

T'yner's eyes unfocused as he talked to his dragon. "Granth tells me that Tannluth had all of them wake up quietly and come outside without waking any of us up. He also assured the other dragons that none of us would be hurt by his little joke. What I want to know is what did he eat to get so much gas?"

H'cup rubbed the back of his neck and said; "A few days ago Tannluth asked me about some of the foods I like to eat and asked to try some. He likes bread but doesn't care for cooked meat or tubers. I've heard that dragons can get a stomachache from eating redfruit, but Tannluth wanted to try some. It didn't hurt his stomach, but ten minutes later I had to run away from where we had our picnic because he let out a gas cloud that would singe your eyeballs! I'm guessing that he found a way to sneak into the dining hall and ate some before coming into the barracks".

"So, it was your dragon who did that". Bronze weyrling S'nar walked up during the last part of H'cup's conversation. He also said; "Well, since he's your dragon and you've got responsibility for his actions, you need to go back into the barracks and open the windows to let in fresh air".

H'cup rolled his eyes; "Aw, come on, S'nar. Can't we just let the gas like, you know, dissipate?"

S'nar shook his head; "And have the rest of us standing around in our nightclothes while we wait? No, H'cup. Since we're up like our dragons wanted, we might as well go for a swim before breakfast. To do that we need to change out of our nightclothes and to do THAT, we need to go back into the barracks. I'm volunteering YOU to go back in and open the windows, so take a deep breath and get going!"

H'cup sighed and shrugged his shoulders. _"Might as well get it over with"_ he thought. He looked back at Tannluth and told him; "Thanks for nothing, you useless reptile!"

Tannluth paused in his laughter to tell him; _:Dragon H'cup. Dragon:_

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><p><em>AN: Hehehe. Short chapter, but I thought it was pretty funny as I was writing it. I left at least one movie reference in this, see if you can spot it._

_As always, please leave a review after reading by using the blue (like Tannluth's and Heimdall's eyes) button below._


	11. Chapter 11 Dragon Harper

**Chapter 11 - Dragon Harper**

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><p><em>AN: This is a bit of a Toothless origins story (not many of them out there) with a bit of movie canon thrown in for good measure. Enjoy!_

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p>The next restday, H'cup and the rest of his weyrling class were at the lake washing their dragons. After a good oil rubdown, H'cup went with Tannluth to lay in a patch of grass under a tree. The rest of the weyrlings went back to the lake for a swim.<p>

H'cup stroked the scales on his friend's neck and asked him; "Tannluth, what was your life like before we met?"

Tannluth turned his head and looked at him. :_You really want to know? What does it matter anyway? We're here, and we're together:_

H'cup shrugged and said; "Well, I'm just curious. I got to know you a bit in the nine months we had together in Berk, but I don't know anything about your past. Where are you from, and how did you come under the influence of the Red Death?"

Tannluth laid his head in H'cup's lap and said; _:Well, to start off, I come from a land far to the South of Berk, a place that you know as Africa:_

H'cup's eyes grew wide; "You came from Africa?" He whistled and said; "THAT'S quite a way down South. How long did it take for you to come North?"

Tannluth snorted in amusement and said; _:I didn't fly North as soon as I hatched, H'cup. I spent a lot of time wandering and learning about the world. Among dragons, my kind are known as 'Prophet Singers'. It was my mission in life to travel the world and learn about new things. I would then teach the younger dragons about the things I have witnessed:_

H'cup nodded; "That's what the Harpers do for the young humans here on Pern."

_:That's exactly what my mission in life was. The teachings of Prophet Singers help keep young dragons from flying into hazards they don't know about:_

"How long have you been doing that?"

_:About 452 turns:_

H'cup's jaw dropped. "WHAAAT? You trying to tell me you're 452 turns old?"

_:No, I'm actually 457 turns old. I didn't leave the nest until I was five:_

H'cup's head spun. He had no idea his friend was that old. "Whoa, I guess I'm going to have to start calling you 'old man' now."

Tannluth swished his tail around and gently slapped H'cup on the back of the head. _:Watch your mouth, or I'm going to start calling YOU 'young pup'!:_

H'cup laughed and rubbed Tannluth's eye ridges. "Okay, okay, truce! I guess 'old man' would be wrong. After all, you were just hatched a few sevendays ago!"

Tannluth purred in pleasure at H'cup's ministrations. He told him; _:Yes H'cup, I am in a new body, but keep in mind that I didn't die when we were snatched out of the sky above Berk. This body is new, but I still have the mind and memories of a 457 turn old Prophet Singer:_

H'cup was still coming to grips with how old Tannluth really was, but asked him; "So, you spent most of your life wandering the Earth. What are some of the places you've been? Are there other types of dragons besides the ones we knew in Berk?"

_:Oh yes, there are quite a few different dragons in the world that you have never seen before. Many of them lived further South because they couldn't tolerate the colder weather of the North. The ones you knew in Berk could use the fire they generate to regulate their own body temperature. The ones who couldn't remained where the weather stayed warm throughout the year:_

"Interesting. And the places you've been?"

_:Well, like I said, I was born and raised on the Western coast of Africa. When I left the nest, I flew South along the coast learning about the new dragons and other creatures I met along the way. Not all those meetings were pleasant. Near the Southernmost point of Africa, I encountered a being much larger than I was who tried to eat me while I was fishing. All dragons knew and respected my kind, but this creature wasn't a dragon:_

"What was it?"

Tannluth shivered and said; _:A sea serpent:_

"Sea serpent? I didn't think those things existed."

_:Oh, they exist all right. There's no mistaking that black slimy body with the yellow stripes. Ugh, just thinking about them is turning my stomach!:_

"Wait, black body with yellow stripes? Is that why you hate eels so much?"

_:YES! They're disgusting! They look and smell exactly like sea serpents, only much smaller:_

H'cup nodded and said; "I see, but in the Training Arena when I used the eel to herd a Zippleback back into his cage, he reacted the same way you did. How did he know of the connection between eels and sea serpents?"

_:Because I told him about it, of course. He was listening to my lessons before he got captured on an earlier raid to your village. He was actually one of my better students, but one of his heads would always get the idea that nothing bad could happen to him:_

H'cup started laughing; "Yeah, that's Zipplebacks for you. Anyway, where did you go after your encounter with the sea serpent?"

_:I spent the next few turns making my way up the East coast of Africa to the sea you know as the Mediterranean. Once there, I spent my time flying along the coast learning all I could about the land, its dragons, and the animals inhabiting them. I avoided humans whenever I could, but the few times I had an accidental encounter it would always go bad. They would start screaming and throwing things at me and brandishing weapons whenever they had some close by. I could never understand what they were saying, but their aggressiveness was unmistakeable. So, I avoided humans like they were eels, flying at night and remaining unseen:_

_:After two hundred turns, I decided that I've learned all I could in that part of the world and decided to leave. I flew North across the continent and crossed a large body of water. I found myself in a rugged land of mountains that seemed to come from the depths of the sea! It was quite possibly the most beautiful land that I have ever seen! I decided right then that this was where I was going to spend the rest of my life. When I roared in my delight at finding a new home, you can imagine my surprise when another dragon roared back! I turned getting ready for a fight, but relaxed when I saw the most beautiful dragoness Prophet Singer flying up to meet me. Her name was Nilakanta and she became my mate:_

_:For the next hundred turns we flew together along the coast of what you call Norway. During that time we raised many young and taught them what they need to know in order to survive in the world. We were flying with my latest brood when one of the youngest felt a call in her mind and flew toward it. She had a pretty big head start, so by the time Nilakanta, myself, and the rest of my family caught up to her we all felt the pull on our minds. We flew into a mist which surrounded a volcanic island. We were drawn into a large cavern on the island which housed a monster:_

H'cup whispered; "The Red Death".

_:Yes, only we just called her 'Demon'. She was much smaller at that time, but the influence she had on the dragons around her was very powerful. My youngest daughter was affected by the demon's call more than all of us, so she flew straight up to her. The demon opened her mouth and snapped her up in one gulp. The horror of losing one of our offspring temporarily snapped the demon's hold on Nilakanta and myself. We howled in grief and rage and attacked the demon for all we were worth. We fired many fireballs at her from different angles in order to keep her off balance. It seemed at first that we were getting the better of her, but it became apparent that she was just taking our measure. After taking the full brunt of our combined fireballs, she just started laughing! I was horrified that nothing we did could hurt her, but Nilakanta roared in pain, frustration, and rage and charged straight at the demon. I screamed for her to stop, but she didn't listen. The demon swung her spiked tail around, catching Nilakanta full on the side. I could hear her ribcage shatter as the blow connected and she collapsed to the cavern floor, mortally wounded. The demon climbed up out of her pit and stood over Nilakanta. I begged the demon not to hurt my mate any more. She just laughed and said; "**Don't worry, little slave, I'm not going to hurt her. Much**". My eyes grew wide and I screamed just as the demon's jaws snapped shut around Nilakanta's head, swallowed it, and started eating the rest of her body. I gagged and turned away as the demon finished the rest of her grisly meal:_

_:I tried to run while the demon was eating my mate, but the power of her mind held me in place. She laughed and said; **"Where do you think you're going, little slave? You can't run away now, I've got plans for you!"** I didn't like the sound of that and I tried struggling against the hold she had over me, but my efforts were futile. Apparently, the demon could sense my resistance and she laughed; **"Oh, I like you, little slave. I think I'll keep you around a LONG time! Unfortunately, these little ones are of no use to me. Come to me, my dears".** I had an idea of what she was going to do and I roared for my sons and daughters to fly away, but they were just as helpless as I was. This time, she forced me to watch as she ate the rest of my family one by one. With the blood of my family on her teeth, she smiled at me and said; **"Now then, little slave, you're going to be my second in command. You're going to lead the dragons on food gathering excursions. I don't care WHERE you get the food, raid the human settlements for all I care, but BRING ME FOOD! I know how you Prophet Singers empathize with other dragon species, so if you fail in your mission I will eat some of the other dragons here and force you to watch. Oh, I won't eat YOU, little slave, so don't start thinking that you can join your family that way. I foresee a long and profitable future, little slave, at least for me!" **Then she started laughing. I have never hated any creature as much as I hated her right then:_

Tannluth paused in his story and had a low growl in his throat. H'cup could see that his eyes were orange with streaks of red. He asked him; "Hey, you okay there, buddy? We don't have to talk about this any more if you don't want to."

Tannluth shook his head and his eyes turned more to yellow. _:I'm alright, H'cup. Sorry about that. It's just that the memory of that bitch and what she did to my family kind of set me off. I want to finish this story. Not only for you, but for the rest of our audience:_

H'cup blinked; "Audience, what do you mean, audience?"

Tannluth nudged him with his snout and said; _:Look around:_

H'cup did just that. He saw that the ground around the tree was filled with young dragons, all intently staring at Tannluth with whirling yellow eyes. He looked up at the ledges surrounding the Weyr bowl and noticed that EVERY dragon in the Weyr were staring at them with the same yellow eyes.

"Wow, I guess you've got their attention, buddy."

_:Uh-huh, and that's why I want to finish this story. Look at their eyes, H'cup. Do you WANT to have every dragon in the Weyr irritated all afternoon? I need to finish this on a happy note:_

H'cup nodded; "Good point, I guess you'd better continue."

_:Thank you. Getting back to my story, that was my life for the next hundred and fifty turns. I would lead raids on human villages, wipe out whole schools of fish, decimate herds of wild animals, and basically terrorize the entire countryside all in an effort to bring that demon her food. During that time, she grew larger not only in size and weight, but also in influence over other dragons. When I was first drawn into her service, there were only a few dozen dragons in her cavern. By the time I led the raid on your village, the numbers were in the hundreds. Even though I was their commander, I was also their self-appointed guardian and teacher. I took it upon myself to teach them things about the outside world, not only to keep their spirits up, but also in the hope that if we broke free of the demon's influence, they would have a clue about what life was like as a free dragon. Most of the time it kept their spirits up, but occasionally a dragon would give up the struggle and return to the cavern without food. The demon kept her promise and would snap up the offender. I was starting to look upon them as the lucky ones:_

_:One night, we left the cavern to go on another raid of a human village. I didn't know it was your village at the time, they all looked alike to me. It was my job to be high watch for the other dragons. When the humans would deploy the heavier weapons, it was my job to take them out. I would scream in my dive in order to scatter the humans surrounding the weapons, then fire a fireball at it. I took two shots that night and felt something wrap around me and pinning my wings against my body. I fell out of control toward the forest, screaming the whole way. The trees slowed my fall enough so that the impact with the ground didn't kill me, but it knocked me unconscious:_

_:I woke up the next morning still wrapped up in the ropes. I tried struggling with all my might to break free, but I couldn't get the leverage I needed. I laid my head back down to rest when I heard a noise coming from the forest. I could smell you and froze in place, hoping that you would pass on by. When you got closer, I started to get REALLY nervous because your scent was the same as the one on the ropes binding me! I thought at the time; "This must be their greatest warrior, to come up with a weapon to shoot me out of the sky. And now he's here to finish what he started!" You said something and put your foot on my shoulder, but I shrugged it off. When you came around my wing so I could see you, I almost fainted with relief. I thought; "Heh, they sent the village pup after me". My joy turned to terror when I saw the knife in your hands!:_

H'cup told him; "Hey, I was scared too, you know. We didn't know ANYTHING about your kind. We just called you Night Furies because that is the time when you would attack us. We never could see you, we knew to just get out of the way before we got blown up. Now, here I was, the village screwup, standing next to one. I didn't know WHAT would happen."

_:You might have been scared H'cup, but imagine what it was like for ME. There I was, all wrapped up and helpless, with a Viking standing next to my throat with a knife in his hands. Yes, I was scared. Scared of dying a stupid, senseless, wasteful death. Dying in battle I could accept, but to have my throat cut when I couldn't fight back was almost more than I could handle. I started moaning, hoping that you would have sympathy and let me go. When I saw you raise the knife, I laid my head down and readied myself for you to strike. When it didn't come, I waited longer but was surprised when you started cutting the ropes. I stayed still until the last one fell free. I first thought I was going to just leap clear and get away, but my dignity demanded that I get a little retribution first. When the last rope fell away, I swept your legs out from under you and pinned you to a rock. I then stared into your eyes and tried to get you to feel what it was like to be bound and helpless. I was mightily tempted to incinerate you right then and there, but I could see the same fear in your eyes that I had in mine a few moments before. It would have been wrong for me to kill you when you let me go, so I roared every dragon curse word I knew at you and flew off:_

A dragon on one of the upper ledges roared and Tannluth turned his head to look up at him. Apparently something was said to Tannluth, but H'cup could only hear his reply.

_:HEY! Don't yell at me! He wasn't my rider at the time, I didn't even know him then! All I knew was that he shot me down and nearly killed me! How was I supposed to react?:_

H'cup asked; "What did they tell you?"

Tannluth scoffed and quietly told him; _:Branth and a few other bronzes were horrified that I would be tempted to kill my rider. You heard my response to them:_ A bit louder, he announced to all the gathered dragons; _:Look, this started as me and my rider having a little heart to heart talk. If you keep __interrupting, I'll just call it quits right now!:_ H'cup could hear quiet murmuring from the dragons on the ledges. Tannluth responded; _:Okay, okay, I'll finish my story. Just remember, no more interruptions!:_

Tannluth continued; _:You already know most of this H'cup. How we met, how we learned to trust each other, and how you helped me learn to fly again. What you do not know is that you gave me a greater gift than my flight, you gave me my freedom:_

H'cup was confused. "Say what? How did shooting you down and crippling you give you your freedom?"

Tannluth answered; _:You shooting that weapon at me is not what gave me my freedom, H'cup. I'm fairly certain that the impact with the forest floor knocked something loose in my brain. After I made my escape from the ropes and was able to sit quietly to think, I noticed something was missing besides my tail fin. The constant buzzing in the back of my brain which was the demon's influence on me was silent for the first time in a very long time! For the first time in one hundred fifty turns, I was finally free! I was actually very glad to see you come to the canyon those first few times, H'cup. It was my innate sense of caution and the fact that I didn't want to scare you off that kept me from coming right up to you and showing you my gratitude:_

"How would you have done that?"

_:How do you think? How did I always show you my gratitude and affection?:_

H'cup rolled his eyes; "I see. You'd have drowned me in dragon slobber."

Tannluth gave an affectionate purr and raised his head to lick H'cup on the side of his face. _:You got it. That's how dragons show their feelings for one another. I also did it because I knew you hated it at the time and it amused me to see your reaction. You don't seem to mind it now:_

"That's because your breath doesn't smell like rotting fish anymore. Also your tongue is much drier. I don't have to wring my tunic out every time you lick me!"

Tannluth started laughing and licked H'cup on the side of his face again. H'cup laughed and pushed his head away and said; "Enough of that, go on with your story."

Tannluth laid his head down in H'cup's lap and said; _:Certainly. Obviously, you kept coming back to the canyon. Each time you returned, the trust between us grew stronger. Each time you returned, you brought something that would help me fly again. You were determined to fix what you've done, and I was just as determined to make it work. After much trial and error, you finally put together something that worked, but we had to test it. I was extremely nervous that morning we flew together for the first time, I didn't want to do anything to screw up and hurt you. Dragons can take quite a bit of punishment and come out okay, but any impact that would mildly hurt me would certainly be fatal to you:_

_:Despite a few minor crashes into some sea stacks the flight went pretty well, until you came loose from the saddle. I roared in fear that I was going to lose you, but you managed to get back in the saddle and stop our tumble. Unfortunately, we were very close to the sea stacks and we were going too fast to steer around them. I screamed 'DO SOMETHING' and I think you heard me! Something seemed to click into place, because it's as if you weren't riding me anymore and suddenly became a part of me. I have never flown that fast or wild in my life, but you kept up with all the necessary changes in the tailfin and we __made it through okay. You yelled in joy and I expressed my happiness in my own way:_

H'cup chuckled as he remembered the fireball they flew through. "Yeah, and thank you very much for that. It took two weeks for my eyebrows to grow back!"

Tannluth also chuckled and said;_ :You're welcome, I thought it looked good on you:_

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><p><em>AN: I had to cut this one off here, will have the next chapter up in a few days._

_Special thanks to Fjord Mustang for the inspiration behind the Red Death. If you read her first story,To Soar Into The Sunset, you'll see what I mean._

_As always, thanks for reading and please use the blue button below to leave a review. Reviews make H'cup, Tannluth, Heimdall, (and me) very happy!_


	12. Chapter 12 dragon harper part 2

**Chapter 12 - Dragon Harper, Part 2**

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><p><em>AN: Many thanks for all those who have read and reviewed this story. Of course, **slytherinsal,** i**luvcats09, Dygen Enteri**, and **D4sssy** have been there from the beginning. Thanks, guys and gals, for sticking with this. Many thanks also to **Moriko, Scorching, Toothless-the-Nightfury, Lt. Cmdr. Radner,** **Coranth, PsychoWing, Pern Dreamer, kc7gr,** and **Taru Toshito** for your later reviews. _

_Here is part 2 of a tale told from Tannluth's point of view. Kudos to Fjord Mustang for some neat ideas I incorporated into this story. Enjoy!_

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p>Tannluth continued; <em>:That next afternoon you introduced me to your friend Astrid and we took her on a little romantic flight. Well, the first part wasn't romantic, I wanted to teach her a lesson about what happens to someone who beats up my rider and my friend. We flew over and around Berk and out to the outer islands. That is when I felt a familiar voice in the back of my mind. It didn't have the same pull as the first time I felt it or in the subsequent one hundred fifty turns thereafter, but it was the demon all the same. I silently asked for your forgiveness and plunged into the mists surrounding the island. When we got closer, I joined a flock of dragons returning to the nest with the demon's food. You tried steering us away, but I had to get you to see this. I figured that if dragons alone and humans alone can't defeat this monster, perhaps together we could beat her. At least that is what I hoped:<em>

_:When we got into the cavern, I hid behind some rocks. We watched the dragons dropping the food in the pit where the demon lived. The last dragon to deliver food was a small one you would call a Gronckle. She vomited a tiny fish and hovered over the pit as if she was proud of her accomplishment. I heard a roar and felt in my mind; __**"Oh, no, my dear. That won't do, that won't do at all. You'll just have to make up the difference!"**__ I knew what was coming and clamped down on my thoughts to keep from yelling a warning. A huge head shot up out of the pit and snapped up the small dragon in one bite. I heard you and Astrid gasp in shock on my back and nodded my head in satisfaction. You've seen what I wanted you to see, now it's time to get out of there! I was getting ready to leap off the ledge when the demon's head started coming back up from the mists. She sniffed the air and I heard her say; __**"Ahhh, what's this? My errant slave has returned. And he's brought me a special treat! It has been SOOO long since I've had humans for a meal! Bring them to me, my little slave, and resume your place as my second in command!" **__I started laughing and said that she no longer had any power over me. I leaped off the ledge just as she swung her head around to try and eat all three of us in one bite. I could hear her screaming in rage as we flew out the cavern, but her pull on my mind wasn't as strong as before and I was able to fly away:_

_:We flew back to the canyon and Astrid left after you had a short discussion with her. Before you left, you told me that you had a bad feeling about the next day and decided to leave my saddle on because we might have to leave in a hurry:_

H'cup interrupted his story and asked him; "Wait a minute, you're telling me that you could understand me when I said that?"

Tannluth gave a little chuckle and said; _:Yes, I did. Of course, I didn't understand Norse before I was shot down, but after all the times you came to the canyon and listening to you talk all the time, I was able to pick up the patterns of the language. I doubt if another dragon could have done it in that short period of time, but Prophet Singers have a strong aptitude for learning languages. It helps us to communicate __when we come into contact with unfamiliar dragon species. All dragons speak the same basic language, but there ARE different dialects:_

"Gobber always said I need to do less talking and more working. I guess running my mouth all the time around you helped you learn Norse, huh?"

Tannluth playfully butted him with his snout and said; _:Yep, but I enjoyed listening to you talk because you always had something interesting to say:_

H'cup sat back against the tree with a perplexed look on his face. Tannluth's eyes whirled yellow as he asked him; _:Hey, what is it, H'cup? What's wrong?:_

H'cup shook his head and said; "I'm what's wrong, Tannluth. It's just that I've come to the realization that I knew absolutely nothing about you back in Berk. I mean, I would talk to you because you were the only one who actually _listened_ to me, but I had no idea that you could actually _understand_ what I was saying! I'm just a little disappointed in myself. Here I am, the supposedly great Master Dragon Trainer of Berk and I don't even know my own dragon!"

Tannluth rubbed his snout on H'cup's chest as he crooned in his throat. He said; _:Don't be so hard on yourself, H'cup, there was no way for you to know. I couldn't talk back to you in your language, but I still loved you all the same. You always treated me like a friend and not just another dumb animal:_

H'cup smiled as he felt the love coming from his dragon. He hugged his neck and said; "What am I ever going to do without you, buddy?"

Tannluth gave a little mock growl and said; _:You're never going to get the chance to find out H'cup, because I'm never going to leave you!:_

H'cup's smile grew wider as he asked; "Promise?"

_:Promise:_

"All right then, back to your story."

_:Right. Anyway, you left that night to get ready for your day in the arena. Apparently, something went wrong with your plans because I was awakened the next day by your scream of fear. I jumped at the walls of the canyon and was able to climb out. Once over the walls, I half-ran, half-glided through the forest for all I was worth. When I entered the village, I could tell your scent was coming from the arena along with all the rest of the villagers. I could hear a dragon you knew as a Monstrous Nightmare roaring in rage and I figured that she was the dragon you were supposed to fight. I bounded off one of the walls surrounding the arena, shot a fireball at the bars to make an opening, and went through the hole to tackle the dragon pinning you to the ground. I was enraged that she would attack and nearly kill my friend. She was driven nearly mad by fear and bloodlust or she would have never tried fighting me. I threw her toward one of the walls and that made her come to her senses. When she came to her feet she was still angry, but she recognized her error and apologized as she went back to her cave: _

_:I lowered my shoulder for you to get on, but you tried pushing on me to get me to leave. I was determined that I wasn't going to leave you alone when I could still sense danger all around us. I could see a large red-headed Viking grab an axe and run straight at us. I thought he was going to hurt you, so I tackled him and was about to blast him with a fireball. You screamed at me to stop, and so I did. When I looked back at you, I caught his scent and I realized this was your father! I lowered my head to apologize, but he knocked me senseless with one of his huge fists. Other Vikings piled on me and they wrapped me in chains. Your father dragged you away and I tried roaring for you to come back, but they clamped a leather strap around my muzzle and I couldn't open my mouth:_

_:The next day I was loaded onto one of the ships. I could hear your father telling another Viking that I was there to lead them to the nest. I started to have a sinking feeling in my stomach that I was going to lead all these humans to their deaths. What's worse, that wouldn't be the end of the killing. The demon would strike out in retaliation and send all the dragons out not for food, but to destroy every human settlement as far as a dragon could fly. I was beginning to feel the same fear as when I was wrapped up in the ropes you shot me down with, H'cup. I was afraid that I was going to die a useless, wasteful death and there wasn't a thing I could do about it. Dragons don't have any gods to pray to, but right then I was silently asking whatever gods or spirits who might be listening to send whatever help they could: _

_:When the ships entered the mists surrounding the island, I could hear the demon's call. I was still able to resist her control over my mind, but not over my homing instincts. I tried fighting it, but I turned my head every time I heard her. Before I knew it, the ship ground ashore on the island. The humans of your village set up their war machines on the beach and fired rocks into the mountain. When they made an opening, all the dragons inside flew out screeching in fear. It was silent for a few moments and then I heard in my mind; **"Who dares attack me here? I will grind every one of your bones to dust!"** The demon roared in her cavern and I tried struggling out of my chains. Your father made ready to fight, but I knew his efforts were futile. The demon came crashing out of the mountain, making the hole even bigger and scattering humans and war machines everywhere. This was the first time I've seen her entire body outside her pit since she's attained her full growth. Let me tell you, she was terrifying!:_

_:The Vikings tried firing spears and hurling rocks at the demon, but they just bounced harmlessly off her armored sides. I could hear the demon laughing as she said; **"INSECTS! You're all nothing but a bunch of insects to me! You know what I do to insects? STOMP ON 'EM AND ROAST 'EM!"** She raised a massive foot and drove it down into a group of Vikings and war machines, shattering the machines like twigs and killing several Vikings. She then drew in a deep breath and blasted her greasy fire on the surrounding ships. I closed my eyes and took a breath, but I could still fell the heat of her flames though my scales! I was struggling harder against my bonds, but the ship was damaged and sinking. I thought; "Wonderful. Instead of having my head bitten off or burned in demon flames or get stomped into dragon-paste, I get to die by drowning. Probably a less painful way to go than the other three, but it's still a stupid way to die." I renewed my struggles against my bonds when I heard a glorious sound, the roaring of the dragons from the arena! I looked up and my heart almost leaped out of my chest with joy when I saw you astride one of the dragons! You jumped down to the ship and tried prying the chains off, but they were too strong. Unfortunately, before you could get some tools to break the chains, the demon's spiked tail smashed into what was left of the burning ship and we were thrown overboard:_

_:I sank quickly and you tried diving down to struggle against my bonds. I saw you start to pass out from lack of air, but your father snatched you away and brought you to the surface. I thought I was going to drown, but your father swam back down, paused in front of the platform I was chained to, and stared into my eyes. I had a fleeting thought that he was there to watch me drown, but he grabbed the collar around my neck and snapped it with his bare hands. Freed of my bonds, I grabbed your father's cape with my claws and shot towards the surface. Depositing him on the shore, I leaped up to a higher rock and barked for you to get on. You jumped into the saddle and started tightening straps. Your father came alongside and said; "Hiccup, you don't have to do this". Do you remember your response?:_

"How could I forget? I said; 'We're Vikings, Dad. It's an occupational hazard.'" H'cup wiped a tear away and got choked up a little as he remembered the next part. "He then said that he was proud to call me his son. That's the first time he's ever said that to me. I think he was trying to say goodbye, because he knew there was very little chance we would come out of that fight alive."

_:I remember that as well. You held his hand and thanked him, then turned forward to grab the handles built into the saddle. I don't think you saw what your father did next:_

H'cup blinked and shook his head. "Wait, what? What do you mean? He did something else? What did he do?"

Tannluth tilted his head in an imitation of a shrug; _:Not much. It was only for a second or two, but he laid his hand on my ear, looked me in the eye, and nodded once before stepping back. Just as he acknowledged you a few moments before, I believe he was acknowledging me as well:_

H'cup sat back, stunned. He always thought his father barely tolerated dragons at best and loathed them at worst. Hel, even when Toothless lived with them his father never even called him by name, always referring to him as 'devil'. Now, Tannluth was telling him it might have been a term of _endearment_ on his father's part? Oh, well, he'll mull it over a bit more later on.

Tannluth continued; _:As we took off to stretch my wings out, the other dragons started to fly clear of the battle zone. Astrid and the dragon you knew as Spike fired one more blast to distract the demon, but before they could get away they were caught in the vortex of the demon trying to suck them into her maw. We came around and I fired a blast at the demon's head. Spike surged forward out of the demon's reach, but Astrid got knocked off and was falling. We reversed course and I tucked my wings in for a dive. I caught her just before she hit the rocks. I deposited her on the shore and flew back towards the demon. There was no way you heard it, but I could clearly hear her encouraging us by saying; 'Go':_

_:You knew the demon had wings, but wanted to see if she could use them. I roared to the demon; "Hey, bitch, wanna play tag? You're it!" and fired a fireball at her back which knocked her over. She got to her feet and shook loose centuries of scale and encrustations from her long unused wings. Screaming in rage, she took off after us. Being unfamiliar with flight after such a long period on the ground, she crashed into many of the sea stacks surrounding the island. Having such thick body armor the collisions didn't hurt her, but they did slow her down. I used this to our advantage and poured on the speed to get ahead of her. I could hear her screaming in my mind; __**"I'LL GET YOU, YOU LITTLE PEST! I'LL RIP YOUR WINGS OFF AND BREAK YOUR LEGS SO YOU CAN'T GET AWAY! THEN I'LL TORTURE YOUR SKINNY PET AND FORCE YOU TO WATCH! GET BACK HERE!"**__ She then rattled off a litany of curses that I won't repeat here. In short, she was PISSED!:_

_:We ascended to lose the demon in the clouds. She followed us in the clouds but we got away from her. With some distance between us, I could aim my fireballs a lot better. I took aim at her wings, placing __several shots along their length, trying to damage them. This only enraged her further, so with a roar of fury she blasted her infernal fire in all directions. We dodged most of it, but unfortunately a stray lick of fire managed to get caught on the sail of the tailfin and it started to burn. Time was running out and we had to act fast. We dove back at the demon and I started taunting her even more. I wanted her SO mad that she wouldn't even be thinking of her actions. We actually flew through the __space between her teeth and made it out before her jaws snapped shut. I shouted to her; "Too slow, ugly. You'll ALWAYS be too slow! You're too old, too slow, and too stupid to ever catch me! Buh, bye now, I'm outta here! See if your old bones can keep up, grandma!" I tucked my wings in and dived straight down. Apparently my strategy worked, because the demon howled in pure rage, tucked her wings in tight to her body, and followed us down. As we got closer to the ground, I could feel the slack in the tailfin and started to get worried. You kept your calm and said you wanted to wait. I kept my faith in you and held my fire. When you heard the demon taking a breath to fire a blast at us, you screamed; 'NOW!', steered the tailfin to flip us around, and I fired a fireball into her open mouth, igniting the accumulating gas inside:_

_:It worked! The demon screamed in pain, fear, and rage as the gases started exploding inside her body. After I took my shot, we snapped back around and flipped up over and around her head. She opened her eyes and saw the ground rushing up to meet her. She tried opening her wings to slow her fall, but the damage I inflicted on them took their toll and they tore apart in the slipstream. Crashing into the rocky shore, the gases that were burning inside her now exploded outward, ripping her body apart in a huge expanding fireball. I tried steering away from the demon's exploding body, but the damage to the tailfin wouldn't let me turn. I pumped my wings to get as much height as I could before the fireball enveloped us. I thought we were clear, but the demon's spiked tail was flailing around in front of us. You tried manipulating the fin, but the linkage snapped and we careened out of control straight into it. I angled my body to take the brunt of the collision, but the impact knocked you unconscious and dislodged you from the saddle. I roared in fear that I was going to lose you. This wasn't like the previous time you came out of the saddle. We were much closer to the ground and the fireball was expanding up to meet us. I angled my remaining fin to keep straight and pumped my wings as hard as I've ever done. I had to reach you! I just had to! I stretched my neck out and retracted my teeth to catch your foot in my gums, but you slipped out of my grasp. I only had another second before you fell into the fireball, so I made a decision that I will regret for the rest of my life:_

Tannluth paused his story, lowered his head, and crooned sadly in his throat. H'cup started to get distressed that something was upsetting his dragon. He stroked Tannluth's eye ridges and said; "Hey, buddy, it can't be that bad. After all, you DID save me from the flames!"

Tannluth's head snapped up and he looked straight at H'cup with whirling yellow eyes. He nearly shouted; _:NO! You don't understand! It's MY fault!:_

Now H'cup was getting really worried. "What, Tannluth? What's so bad that's got you so upset? What's your fault?"

Tannluth sighed, closed his eyes, and quietly said; _:When I couldn't catch you the first time, I extended my teeth to catch your foot and pull you toward me so I could wrap my wings around you. My teeth only have two positions, all the way out or all the way retracted. I took your foot in my mouth and I tried being as gentle as I could, but when I turned my head to bring you closer to me I could feel my teeth tearing into your flesh. Apparently, it did so much damage that they had to amputate what was left. So it's my fault that half your leg is missing. I'm so sorry, H'cup. If I could go back and change things, I would. I'd understand if you don't forgive me for this:_

Tannluth bowed his head waiting for H'cup's reaction. When it came, it caught Tannluth totally by surprise. H'cup lifted Tannluth's head, kissed him on the snout, and wrapped his arms around his neck saying; "Silly dragon, you got both of us upset over nothing! I already knew about that!"

Tannluth's pulled back from H'cup's embrace and his eyes snapped open. _:WHAAAT? You already knew? How did you guess?:_

H'cup shrugged; "Gobber told me a few sevendays later after I was up and walking again. I asked him if he had seen my foot before it was amputated. He said he did but he didn't want to tell me about it. I insisted he tell me and he said it looked like a dragon chewed on it. I figured the rest of it out myself."

Tannluth tentatively bumped him with his snout. _:And you're not mad at me because of that?:_

H'cup chuckled and said; "Shards no, Tannluth, I'm not mad at you! How could I be? You saved my life! If you didn't grab me the way you did, I would be dead. Remember, it was that demon that put us in that situation. If anything, I blame HER for the loss of my leg. So remember, Tannluth, you didn't cripple me, you SAVED me!"

Tannluth purred and licked H'cup's face, his eyes whirling a happy blue. He rubbed his head against H'cup's chest as he said; _:I'm so glad you're not upset about this H'cup. I was worried that you would miss running and jumping like you used to and you would blame me for the loss of your mobility:_

"Well, yeah, I do miss those things sometimes, but I like breathing and the feeling of being alive even more! And YOU gave me that, Tannluth! Remember that!"

Tannluth didn't reply, but continued purring and rubbing his head on H'cup's chest. H'cup looked up and around at the dragons gathered around them. He said to Tannluth; "Hey, buddy, I guess continuing with the story worked. Look around."

Tannluth lifted his head and looked around at the blue whirling eyes of their audience. _:Huh, looks like everyone likes my story now. I could stop now but that's not how it ends, is it?:_

H'cup chuckled and said; "Nope, it isn't. Why don't you wrap things up for everyone involved?"

_:Very well. I stayed by your side while you were unconscious. Your father, the healer, and several others force fed you so you wouldn't starve. My injuries healed a lot faster and I was able to wander the village from time to time. I could see that the dragons from the arena were now ambassadors to their wild cousins and were teaching them how to live peacefully with humans. It wasn't all sweetness and light those first few sevendays, H'cup. I had to get involved on several occasions to keep a dragon from flaming or clawing a human, and the villagers were also interceding on behalf of their more belligerent fellow Vikings. Things settled down by the time you regained consciousness, so when you walked outside all you saw were Vikings and dragons walking side by side peacefully around the village. You didn't see the work that went into creating that harmony:_

_:I took up my duties again as Prophet Singer, teaching the dragons that they were partners with the Vikings, not just pets. It was a mutually beneficial relationship, we would lend our strength and ferociousness to defend our village, the humans would use their cunning and inventiveness to provide food and shelter for everyone, both human and dragon:_

_:That was what our life was like for the next few months. We endured the winter and started hunting to resupply the village. We were struck by lightning on our way back and transferred here to Pern. You wound up on a beach somewhere South of here and of course, I wound up in an egg. And now, here we are under a tree in this lovely weather telling our story:_

Tannluth concluded his story and laid his head in H'cup's lap. There was silence for a few moments before H'cup heard the bugling from the dragons and applause from the dragonriders who came out to listen. H'cup looked into the pleased faces of the dragonriders and thought; _"Looks like I'll be telling my story next mealtime!"_

Tannluth chimed in as he heard H'cup's thought; _:Yep, and I can lend you my memory of events if you want:_

H'cup blinked and asked; "You can do that?"

Tannluth lifted his head and looked at him. _:Sure, what do you think happened during Impression? We are now two halves of the same being. We now share one soul, one spirit, and as our bond strengthens, one mind. Remember during my story I used terms you were familiar with? I got that from your mind, and you can do that just as easily with me:_

"And that doesn't bother you, me reaching into your mind?"

_:Why should it? I've already told you, we are of one mind. Dragons already see their riders that way. It's you humans who have to get over this 'I'm an individual' thing:_

H'cup shook his head and said; "It's just something that I'll have to get used to, I guess."

_:No guessing about it, H'cup. Don't worry, it'll get easier with time:_

H'cup's reverie was interrupted by a clanging sound coming from the dining cavern. He got up and brushed the dirt from his leggings and said to Tannluth; "Well, that's the lunch bell. Would you be alright out here by yourself?"

Tannluth snorted and said; _:I'm not exactly by myself out here, H'cup. Like I told you before, we're always together in our minds. So, HOW is it that I'm alone?:_ Tannluth finished the last part of his comment in a sarcastic tone.

H'cup waved his hands; "Okay, okay, I get it. I was just asking if you needed anything."

Tannluth laid his head on his crossed paws and looked at H'cup with whirling blue eyes. _:I'm perfectly fine, H'cup, but thank you for your consideration. I have a full belly, freshly cleaned and oiled hide, a warm spot in the sun to lay down in, and the company of all these wonderful dragons. Go on inside and have some lunch, I'll take a nap and wait for you here:_

H'cup stroked his eye ridges and said; "Thanks, buddy" before turning away towards the dining cavern. Heimdall saw him walking and flew down from his perch to land on H'cup's shoulder.

"There you are, little buddy. Have an interesting day?" Heimdall crooned in pleasure as H'cup scratched him under the chin. "Thought so, how about some lunch?" H'cup laughed as Heimdall chirped in the affirmative.

H'cup walked into the cavern and ignored the stares from the seated dragonriders. He took a plate from the serving line, piled on some meatrolls, bread, and tubers and sat down at the weyrling table. T'yner came up and sat next to him. He turned to H'cup and said; "I linked with Granth and heard most of Tannluth's story, H'cup. You told me he was your dragon back on Earth, but I never knew the story of his past."

H'cup shook his head; "Neither did I, T'yner. I always knew he was special, but I had no idea what his life was like before we met." Between bites of his meal, H'cup glanced at the other riders seated at the tables. All of them were talking with their neighbors, but H'cup would catch a furtive glance his way almost everywhere he looked. He thought; _"Heh, looks like I'm the topic of conversation this afternoon."_

Tannluth broke in on his thoughts when he told him; _:What did you expect? The other riders suspected there was something different about me, and now they know. Give it time, they'll get used to it:_

H'cup sent the thought back; _"Whoa, you startled me, Tannluth! I thought you were taking a nap. I didn't think you'll be listening to what is going on here."_

Tannluth replied; _:What can I say? I'm nosy and was wondering how you were doing. Ummm, how ARE you doing?:_

_"Not much to tell you right now, buddy. Most everyone is talking between themselves right now. I'm sure the questions will start after lunch is over."_

_:Well, just remember that I'm here in case you need anything:_

_"Thanks, buddy, you're the best."_

_:I know:_

H'cup chuckled and quietly thought; _"Stuck-up dragon."_

_:I heard that!:_

H'cup actually laughed out loud after hearing his dragon's reply. Several riders turned to look at him and H'cup sheepishly told them; "Sorry, just talking with my dragon." He finished his meal and was talking to T'yner when R'mart spoke up.

"Rider H'cup."

H'cup swallowed hard and stood, facing the Weyrleader's table; "Yes, Weyrleader?"

R'mart amended his tone; "Don't worry lad, I'm not going to bite you. Branth and I were listening to that wonderful tale Tannluth told earlier. I'm sure most of the dragonriders here were listening as well." H'cup looked around the cavern and saw most of the dragonriders nodding their heads in agreement. The drudges and kitchen help just stared with confused looks on their faces.

R'mart continued; "My point, H'cup, is that not everyone present could hear your dragon's story. I know you could tell his tale again, but I'm more interested in hearing your version of events. Would you be interested in playing the part of harper for us?"

H'cup looked around at the faces turned towards him. He saw curiosity on most, scorn on a few, but decided to accede to R'mart's request when T'yner prodded him with an elbow and nodded. He walked around the tables and stood in front of the main table at the front of the cavern. Turning around to face the majority of his audience, he cleared his throat and began to speak.

"This story I'm about to tell you takes place many, many turns in the past in a land a very long way from here. The place is called Berk. It is situated just a bit North of "Hopeless" and just South of "Freezing to Death". It is firmly located on the Meridian of Misery..."

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><p><em>AN: There's another movie quote here (I just can't help myself). I should be getting into H'cup's and Tannluth's weyrling training in the next chapter._

_As always, please use the blue button below and leave a review. Reviews make H'cup, Tannluth, Heimdall, (and me) very happy!_


	13. Chapter 13 Ambushed

**Chapter 13 - Ambushed**

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><p><em>AN: Hello everyone. Thanks for sticking with the story and sorry I haven't updated sooner._

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p>H'cup and the rest of the weyrlings were at the lake a few days later washing their dragons. He couldn't help but notice that there was a lot more of Tannluth to scrub than there was nearly five sevendays ago. He looked over at T'yner who was scrubbing his blue dragon, Granth.<p>

"There's a lot more to scrub every time we come here, isn't there T'yner?"

"Uh-huh, and I love every minute of it! Granth really appreciates it too, don't you love?" Granth swiveled his head around and nuzzled his rider. T'yner paused scrubbing his hide to scratch his eye ridges and Granth purred in pleasure. H'cup smiled at this and was bumped in the shoulder by a large black head.

_:Hey, what about me? Do I get some lovin' as well?:_

H'cup stood with his hands on his hips and looked into Tannluth whirling blue eyes. He said; "Awww, you poor, abused, sorry little wretch of a black dragon. Not getting enough lovin' huh? Well, we'll just have to rectify that situation now, shall we?" H'cup smirked and cracked his knuckles. Tannluth lowered his ears and his eyes started to turn a bit yellow with worry.

_:Umm, H'cup, what are you doing? I was just kidding when I said that:_

"Well, I'm not. Get ready for a scratching session like you've never had before!" H'cup proceeded to _attack_ Tannluth's hide with his fingernails, scratching him all along his neck, under his chin, the top of his head, and finally his eye ridges using both hands and scratching all the eye ridges at the same time. Tannluth quivered with extreme pleasure, flopping down in the shallow water and purring in contentment. When H'cup reached his eye ridges, Tannluth's back leg started twitching in time with the scratching. H'cup was laughing uncontrollably, not only at Tannluth's reaction to being scratched so forcefully, but also at what he was saying over their link.

_:Oooh, oh yeah. Oh, that's the spot. Right there, oh yeah. Harder, harder. Give it to me, keep it coming. Oh, yeah, I'm feeling the LOVE now!:_

H'cup laughed; "You may be feeling the love, but you're looking and sounding quite ridiculous!"

Tannluth's eyes were the deepest blue H'cup has ever seen them. He purred; _:I really don't care at the moment H'cup, this feels AMAZING!:_

"You like it like that? Well, lets see about scratching you right here..." H'cup stopped when he saw that one of the scales on top of Tannluth's head came off in his hand.

He thought; "_Awww, shards, is that supposed to happen?" _He then said; "Umm, Tannluth, I knocked one of your scales loose. I'm sorry about scratching you so hard. If I knew that was going to happen..." H'cup stopped his tirade when Tannluth gently bumped his muzzle into his chest.

_:Don't worry, H'cup, I was expecting that. In fact, that's why the scratching felt so good. Whenever new scales come in, the old ones get itchy until they fall off. Your scratching just accelerated the process:_

"WHAAT? You're telling me that you're going to lose all your scales?"

_:Yep, just the old ones. There are new scales coming in and the old ones get loose and fall off:_

"You said you were expecting it. Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

_:There was no need, the process would have happened whether you knew about it or not. Besides, it's been over 450 turns since I've had growth this fast and I didn't know exactly WHEN I was going to shed. Once I reach full growth, I shed scales once every turn:_

"Why do you have to shed your scales? Your hide grows just fine as you get bigger. Granted, we have to keep it oiled regularly so it expands as you grow, but do your scales expand as well?"

_:Yes, up to a certain point. The scales are harder than the rest of my hide, so they expand slower. When the edges of the scales start to stretch at the hide, it pulls away and they start to fall out. A newer, larger scale grows in to replace it and the process starts all over again:_

"How often will you shed until you reach your full growth?"

_:Probably once a month, less often as I get closer to my full growth:_

"Is there anything I can do to help the process along?"

_:Thank you for your consideration, H'cup, but no. Shedding happens on its own no matter what either of us does. However, there is one thing I will need to help harden the new scales:_

"What is it that you need, Tannluth?"

_:Sand. As fine and as clean as we can get. I know there is a bunch in the Hatching Cavern, but is there some more anywhere else in the Weyr?:_

"Sand? Why do you need sand? Wouldn't the dirt next to the lake be sufficient for you to roll around in?"

_:No, the dirt has too much clay in it which would make the scales too brittle. Besides, rolling around in sand or dirt doesn't help harden the scales:_

"Well, I helped clean out the sand from the Hatching Grounds after your hatching. I remember dumping it in the lake just over there. All the old egg goop should be washed out by now." H'cup pointed to a corner of the lake and Tannluth turned his head to see where he was pointing.

Tannluth got up and started walking. He looked back at H'cup who was still standing in the shallows. _:Well, come on. Show me exactly where you dumped the sand and I'll let you know if it's what I need:_

H'cup limped after him as fast as his wooden leg would allow. Tannluth looked down at it and sniffed.

_:When are you going to make a better one of those that you can take in the water? I know you don't want the metal of your good one to get wet, but the springs seem to help you walk. You barely limp at all with your other leg:_

"Yeah, the tweaks I've done to my other false leg seem to help. Besides, I'm getting used to walking with it. This leg is much stiffer and doesn't absorb shock as well, but it was simple to make. It hurts a little to walk with it, but when I'm washing you I'm not really walking very far."

Tannluth stopped in his tracks and said; _:We can do this later when you have your good leg. I didn't know it bothered you so much:_

H'cup, however, kept walking. "No, Tannluth, it's alright. Besides, the spot where I dumped the sand is right up here." He walked into the lake and pointed to a sandy mound covered by a few inches of water. Tannluth came up next to him and poked at the mound with his muzzle. He took in a mouthful of water and blew it on the top of the mound. He watched the sand settle and nodded in satisfaction.

_:This will do:_

H'cup stepped back because he thought Tannluth was going to roll around in the sand. Therefore, he was very surprised when the dragon scooped up a big mouthful of sand and _swallowed_ it!

"Umm, Tannluth, what are you doing? You just ATE some sand!"

Tannluth lowered his head to scoop up another mouthful and told him; _:I told you I needed sand to harden my scales, H'cup, how else did you think I was going to get it inside me? I have to digest it first and then my body will extract the needed minerals:_

"Well, it's pretty damned peculiar. I've never heard of another Pern dragon doing that!"

_:None of the other dragons of Pern have scales, however, this is perfectly normal for the dragons of Earth. Some of them would eat different minerals to bring out the color of their scales. Most dragons aren't picky, but the ones we called Brightscales and you knew as Deadly Nadders are VERY picky and would eat colorful gemstones every time they shed:_

H'cup nodded and thought about how Spike would spend hours making sure his scales looked the absolute best. Tannluth scooped up one more mouthful and then took a long drink from the lake to wash it all down.

"Will that be enough?"

_:Yeah, that will do for now. It's good to know I don't have to go to the Hatching Cavern to get the sand I need. There's not a clutch on the sands at the moment, but it could get awkward when there IS a brooding mother watching over her eggs:_

H'cup thought back to how Rennsith reacted to his presence just by walking next to the sands. He shuddered to think how a queen dragon would react to another dragon walking onto the cavern floor to eat sand next to her eggs. Tannluth sensed his thoughts and shook his head.

_:Nope, that DEFINITELY would not be a pretty picture!:_

"Then it's a good thing there's another source of sand for your scales, buddy. It won't be a problem once we start flying. We could always go South to the beaches of Ista or even the desert of Keroon, but that's in the future."

Tannluth's eyes whirled with streaks of yellow. _:I can't wait to start flying again, I miss it:_

"Yeah, me too, buddy, me too. In the meantime, how about a good oil rubdown?"

Tannluth's eyes returned to blue as he said; _:As if I'd ever refuse one of those? Race you back!:_ and took off running toward the group of young dragons clustered by the lake.

"HEY! Not fair! You KNOW I can't run fast with this leg! That's cheating!"

_:Nyahh, nyahh! Maybe this will give you incentive to make yourself a better leg so you can keep up!:_

"Useless reptile!"

_:Silly mammal! Insult me all you want, I still win!:_

o0o0o0o

After giving Tannluth a good oil rubdown, H'cup walked back to the weyrling barracks in order to change his clothes and put on his good leg. Halfway there, one of the lower cavern workers rushed out to meet him.

"Black Rider H'cup, I'm so glad to catch up to you. There's a problem in the lower caverns and I was wondering if you could help us out with it."

H'cup looked at the young man addressing him. He looked to be about sixteen or seventeen turns old and was slightly taller than he was, but he didn't recognize him.

"Umm, I'm sorry, you know me, but I don't think I've ever seen you before."

"Oh, I'm sorry, my name is Merdan. I have been working in the lower caverns ever since the last hatching. That's probably why you've never seen me."

H'cup nodded, what he said made sense. Lower cavern workers lived in a separate part of the Weyr from the dragonriders and at their meals at different times. They were essential to the smooth running of a Weyr, but they all too often went unseen by the dragonriders.

"How can I help you Merdan?"

"We were using the lifts to deliver the meals to the Weyrleader's quarters when one of them jammed. We can't get it unstuck and we need it before the noon meal. I know that you were a Journeyman Smith before you Impressed and was hoping you could come down to see what you could do to fix it."

"Could you get the Weyrsmith to check it out? I'm a little busy with my new dragon and I've only got a little while between classes."

"I tried checking with the Weyrsmith, but he said he was too busy right now and will get to it later this afternoon. That will be too late! We were hoping to get the lifts working before noon. It will take a lot longer to hand-deliver all the meals to the upper weyrs. If you could just come down and take a look, maybe you can convince the Weyrsmith to come and fix the problem."

H'cup sighed and said; "All right, let me get changed and I'll meet you at the cavern entrance."

Merdan turned and ran back to the cavern. "Thanks, Black Rider. I'll be waiting for you."

H'cup got to his bunk and changed clothes. As he was strapping on his leg, he reached out to his dragon.

_"Tannluth, please contact Elonth and let his rider know I might be a little late getting to class. Some of the lower cavern people need me to check something out for them."_

There was a short pause and Tannluth replied; _:Done. Elonth's rider says to try and finish up quickly:_

_"Tell him I will. See you in a little bit, buddy."_

H'cup walked across the weyr bowl to the lower cavern entrance. He didn't see Merdan right away, but he did notice the full-grown blue dragon sitting perfectly still off to the side of the entrance. H'cup looked directly at him and noticed the dragon was staring back. He could also see that the dragon's eyes were swirling red in extreme agitation.

_"That's strange, I wonder what's got that dragon so upset?"_ H'cup thought. He then reached out to Tannluth. _"Hey, Tannluth, you see the blue dragon next to the lower cavern entrance? Can you talk to him and ask him what he's so upset about?"_

There was a pause before Tannluth responded. _:It's strange, H'cup, but he was very rude to me. He told me to go away and didn't have time for silly questions. I have no idea why he's so agitated because Threadfall isn't supposed to happen for three days:_

_"Hmmm, strange indeed. Keep an eye on him for me, will you buddy?"_

_:You got it:_

H'cup walked past the dragon and inclined his head to show his respect. The dragon didn't react at all, just tracked him with his eyes until H'cup reached the cavern entrance. When he did, the dragon stood up, walked in front of the entrance, and sat down facing the weyr bowl. H'cup shook his head because it looked like the blue dragon was _guarding_ the entrance!

_"Guarding it from __what__, exactly?"_ H'cup thought. His reverie was broken when Merdan called to him.

"Ah, Black Rider H'cup, glad you made it. The machinery that is broken is right down this hall. If you would follow me, please?" and turned around to walk down the hall. However, H'cup didn't follow. He turned back to look at the blue dragon again.

"Merdan, there's something strange about that blue dragon outside. Did you see where his rider went? I need to ask him why his dragon is so upset."

Merdan replied; "No, I don't know where his rider is located and I don't know what's wrong with that dragon. I could never figure dragons out. I stood on the grounds for the last hatching, but none of the dragons wanted me."

H'cup turned and looked at him; "You were a candidate? I didn't know that. Maybe they will let you stand for a different clutch."

Merdan shrugged; "Maybe. In the meantime, I've got duties and you've got classes to attend to. If you come with me..."

H'cup held up his hand and turned to face outside; "Just a minute Merdan, let me ask my dragon something." H'cup concentrated on his link with Tannluth and never heard the footsteps coming up behind him.

_"Tannluth, I was just thinking that maybe you could...oooff..."_ H'cup grunted as a large black canvas bag was thrown over his head and shoulders. A cord was pulled that pinned his arms to his sides and he was shoved into the wall.

Tannluth roared; _:H'CUP! What's wrong? What was that?:_

_"Someone threw a big bag over my head and it's got my arms pinned to my sides! They're shoving me down the hall! I don't know where they're taking me, but it doesn't sound good!"_

_:Hang on, H'cup, I'm coming! I'll be with you in just a...HEY! Get out of my way!:_

_"What is it Tannluth? What happened?"_

_:The blue dragon is standing in my way and now he won't let me get past!:_

H'cup could hear three other footsteps besides his own. The one holding his left arm chuckled and told the others; "Stoth is keeping the freak from interfering. Let's get this done quickly and we'll take care of two problems at the same time."

H'cup's blood ran cold, this was a DRAGONRIDER! And from the way he was talking, he was planning something unpleasant for H'cup and Tannluth. He didn't want to find out the hard way what that was so he contacted Tannluth.

_"Tannluth, this is an ambush and the dragon is helping! Try to call for help!"_

H'cup could actually _feel_ Tannluth's rising tide of panic and rage. Tannluth focused on blue dragon standing in front of him and shouted with all his might;

_**:YOU! I TOLD YOU BEFORE! GET OUT OF MY WAY, NOW!:**_

When Tannluth shouted "NOW", several things happened at once. The walls of the Weyr reverberated with the sound of every single dragon roaring simultaneously, the blue dragon guarding the entrance recoiled and screamed in pain, and the dragonrider holding H'cup's left arm released his grip and collapsed to the floor holding his head and moaning. H'cup took advantage of the distraction to pivot around on his good foot and aimed his false leg at the shins of the person holding his right arm. The metal of his lower leg met the shinbone of his assailant with a very satisfying _crunch_. He fell to the floor screaming and cursing. H'cup could hear Tannluth broadcasting to the rest of the Weyr;

**_:HELP! SOMEBODY HELP US! THEY'RE ATTACKING MY RIDER DOWN THAT HALL! HELP!:_**

H'cup started pulling the bag over his head and was halfway out of it when the third attacker struck. He had his arms over his head and the bag almost off when he felt an incredible impact with his right upper arm. He almost passed out from the pain, but gritted his teeth and tried moving around so he wasn't a stationary target. It wasn't good enough and he felt another terrific blow to his midsection. It knocked the breath out of his lungs and he dropped to his knees, but he managed to get the hood off. He had a glimpse of something coming in from his left, so he ducked instinctively. It wasn't enough to avoid it entirely and he felt a huge impact to the side of his head. Even though it was a glancing blow, it felt like his head nearly exploded. He struggled to keep his eyes open and looked up into the face of his assailant. There were enough glows to see the hate-contorted face of Merdan standing above him with a raised club. Just before he could swing the club to deliver a fatal blow to the head, H'cup saw someone tackle him from the side. Several other people were running in to assist, two others to hold a struggling and cursing Merdan down, others to check on the dragonrider and the other assailant, and finally someone to summon the weyrhealer for himself. Before his vision went dark, he took a moment to assure Tannluth that he was all right. After he received the grateful reply, H'cup slipped into merciful unconsciousness.

o0o0o0o

H'cup's eyes fluttered open as he started to wake up. The first thing he noticed was that his head felt fuzzy. The second was that a large black head with swirling yellow eyes was hovering right over his own. Tannluth leaned in and gave H'cup a tentative bump with his snout.

_:Hey there, stranger. Glad to see you back amongst the living!:_

H'cup reached up with his left hand to stroke Tannluth's muzzle. His right was strapped securely to his side. Tannluth purred with pleasure and relief.

"Hey, buddy, sorry to scare you there."

_:Well, it was a very near thing, you've been unconscious for two days! Are we going to have to do this all the time? I mean, we're supposed to fight Thread, do we have to fight our fellow dragonriders as well?:_

"I'm not sure, Tannluth, but I think this was an isolated incident. The one who led me into the ambush was a former candidate. I didn't see the one I hit with my fake leg, but he could have been a failed candidate as well. I have no idea why the dragonrider wanted to attack me. Now I know why his dragon was so upset, he didn't want anything to do with it but was forced to go along by his rider."

"You've got most of that correct, Rider H'cup" Weyrleader R'mart said as he walked up. "Judging from that ugly bruise on the side of your head, you had a concussion and the weyrhealer kept you dosed up on fellis to make sure the swelling on your brain went down. He reduced your fellis dose this morning, so he had a good idea when you were going to wake up and he let me know you were coming around. Do you feel up to a few questions? I also have some questions for Tannluth and was wondering if you would relay his answers."

Before H'cup could reply, Tannluth answered him directly; _:No need for that Weyrleader, I'll speak to you:_

R'mart raised his eyebrows in surprise and nodded his head. "Thank you for talking with me, Tannluth." He paused to pull up a chair next to H'cup's bed. "First off, we questioned K'nal, that's the rider of the blue dragon who delayed you, Tannluth, and the two others, Merdan and Penell. Merdan and Penell were failed candidates from the last Hatching. Penell was jealous that you Impressed Tannluth from the stands and felt cheated of his dragon. He felt that if he can't have a dragon, then you shouldn't either."

"We think that K'nal was a major influence on Merdan, because their stories are similar. Both of them were initially going to accept the two of you as another dragonrider pair, but they realized how different the two of you are when they heard your stories the other night. They felt that the two of you would "disrupt the purity of Pern's bloodlines" their words, not mine. They felt it was their duty to eliminate that threat."

"I have transferred Merdan and Penell back to their former Holds with a letter explaining their actions to their respective Lord Holders. Their punishment will most likely be execution for attempted murder of a dragonrider."

"We can't really blame the actions of K'nal's dragon, Stoth. According to my dragon, Branth, he was an unwilling accomplice to K'nal's treachery. Unfortunately, he will share in the punishment of his rider."

"What punishment is that, Weyrleader?"

"Banishment. They will be sent to Southern Weyr as soon as Stoth is able to fly again. We can't execute the rider because that results in the death of his dragon. Which brings me to my first question for you, Tannluth. What was it that you hit him with? The dragon healer says that both of Stoth's eardrums are ruptured and he was bleeding into his sinuses. It was two days since the attack and he still has a hard time walking in a straight line."

Tannluth sighed and said; _:I don't know exactly what it was that I used against Stoth, Weyrleader. All I know is that I was afraid for my rider and angry that I couldn't do anything to help him. I just felt all the rage, fear, helplessness, anger, and hopelessness burst up inside me and I let it out when I shouted at Stoth. I really didn't mean to hurt him, I just wanted him to get out of my way:_

R'mart nodded and said; "That's what I got when I talked to Branth about what he felt. He said he heard you tell him to move, but at that one moment it was the most powerful dragon mind he's ever felt. You both know that every dragon in the Weyr roared when they felt your mind surge, Tannluth?" Both H'cup and Tannluth nodded. "What you don't know is that the Weyr's senior queen, Solth, told us that every queen dragon on Pern, no matter where they were, also felt it."

H'cup and Tannluth looked at each other in surprise. H'cup turned to R'mart and asked him; "So, what does that mean for the two of us, Weyrleader?"

"It means that as Tannluth gets older and learns how to control this ability..." R'mart stopped as Tannluth cried in fear.

_:NO! I don't EVER want to feel that kind of power again! I had to call up every negative emotion I have just to bring it forth. I hurt another dragon with it and I don't want to take the chance of hurting another. Besides, I've felt power like that before. I hoped it was gone forever, but I guess I was wrong:_

H'cup frowned but then his eyes grew wide as he remembered Tannluth's story. He asked him; "That power you mentioned, it's not what I think it is?"

Tannluth lowered his head and nodded imperceptibly. _:Yes, the power my mind generated was the same as another power you and I vanquished on Earth:_

_:The demon:_

* * *

><p><em>AN: I thought about what they would do with the sand in the Hatching Cavern after a bunch of dragon eggs hatched. There is usually some leftover fluid inside the egg and some of that is bound to get on the sand. If you left it in the cavern, it would stink up the place so it makes sense to have someone clean it up. Kind of like a cat litter box._

_As always, thanks for reading and please use the blue button below to leave a review._


	14. Chapter 14 Healing

**Chapter 14 - Healing**

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><p><em>AN: Hey everyone, I did a little rewrite to the previous chapter so events in this one makes more sense. So, before proceeding, please go back and see the changes I made to the last half of chapter 13. Thanks. _

_By the way, this one is going to have a bit of angst in it, so you've been warned..._

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

* * *

><p>The next morning, H'cup got a visit from his friend T'yner.<p>

"Hey, T'yner, how's everything going?"

"The question should be, how are YOU doing H'cup?"

"Pretty good, considering." H'cup tilted his head to indicate his bandaged ribs and his immobilized right arm. "The weyrhealer said I had a cracked rib, dislocated shoulder, and a concussion. He kept me under for two days to make sure the swelling in my brain went down. He wants me to stay another day to make sure there's no other complications."

T'yner laughed; "I always said you had a swelled head. All it takes is a little fellis to reduce it, huh? I'll have to remember that!"

H'cup laughed and swatted him with the back of his left hand. "Quiet, you. Your bedside manner sucks, you know. I'm a grievously injured man, here!"

"Aww, do you want me to fluff your pillow or feed you some soup? If you want a sponge bath, you can forget it! I'm not going there!"

They both started laughing hard but stopped when H'cup winced in pain.

T'yner smirked; "Let me guess, it only hurts when you laugh?"

H'cup groaned and leaned back on his pillow; "Yeah, the weyrhealer says it will be a couple of sevendays before it gets better, same thing with my arm. Even when I leave here, I'm going to need some help with my dragon. By the way, how is Tannluth doing?"

T'yner shrugged; "Oh, all right, I guess."

H'cup narrowed his eyes. "You guess? What do you mean, you guess? He's either all right or he isn't. Which is it?"

T'yner sighed and said; "I don't know H'cup, Tannluth started acting weird after he visited with you yesterday. He was fine for the first two days when we washed, oiled, and fed him. You could tell he was worried about you and he left to be at your side as soon as we were finished, but he would talk to me and the other weyrlings as we bathed and oiled him. Now, he won't even talk to us. I have to get Granth to relay his answers."

H'cup reached out to Tannluth and asked; _"Hey, Tannluth, you doing all right?"_

When Tannluth answered, H'cup was concerned because he sounded listless. _:Hmmm? Oh, hey H'cup. Yeah, I'm doing okay. Don't be concerned about me, the weyrlings are taking care of my needs right now:_

_"You sure? You don't sound all right."_

_:I'm okay, I'm just a little tired, that's all. I guess shedding scales takes a lot of energy out of me. I'll be back to normal in a few days:_

_"Okay, buddy. I'll talk you later."_

H'cup frowned and told T'yner; "You're right T'yner, there IS something wrong with him. He said he's tired because he's shedding his scales, but that sounds like an excuse. SOMETHING is bothering him and I need to find out what it is!"

o0o0o0o

H'cup's examination came the next morning. After the weyrhealer checked over all of his injuries and gave him an admonition to take things slow, he was released from his care. The first thing he did was to make his way across the weyr bowl to where Tannluth was napping in the shade of a tree. On his way there, Heimdall flew from his perch and landed on his shoulder. H'cup scratched his head and the small bronze fire lizard purred.

"Hey there, little buddy. How have you been doing?"

Heimdall chirped at him in response and gave H'cup images of where he's been. It was always funny and a little disorienting to see life through a fire lizard's eyes, but it made Heimdall happy when he shared with his friend. H'cup continued to pet Heimdall as he walked up to the black dragon.

"Hey bud, glad to see me?"

Tannluth barely lifted his head and cracked open one eye momentarily. H'cup had a glimpse of yellow-orange before the eye closed again. When Tannluth opened both eyes, H'cup noticed they were now green.

_:Oh, hello H'cup. Everything all right with the weyrhealer?:_

"Yeah, everything's all right. He told me to take it slow for the next few sevendays. Even then, I'll be a bit sore for a while until I heal completely. But enough about me, how are YOU doing?"

Tannluth laid his head on his crossed paws and closed his eyes. _:Oh, I'm all right, just tired all the time from shedding:_

H'cup narrowed his eyes and said; "Beastdung!"

Tannluth's eyes snapped open as he said; _:What did you say?:_

"You heard me, you're hiding something and I want to know right now what it is! I could see your eyes when I walked up, something is seriously bothering you. This isn't like you, Tannluth. Talk to me, let me help you with whatever problem you have."

Tannluth closed his eyes and laid his head back down on his paws. _:You can't help me, no one can:_

H'cup sat down next to him and reached out to stroke the scales on Tannluth's neck to try and comfort him. Tannluth, however, jumped up and _hissed_ at him!

_:DON"T TOUCH ME!:_ He then lowered his head and said in a small voice; _:I'm not worthy to be touched:_

H'cup, once he got over his initial shock at Tannluth's reaction, was _pissed_! He shouted; "Tannluth, what in the name of Faranth, Odin, Thor, and all the gods of Asgard and Hel is _wrong_ with you!"

H'cup could see that Tannluth was trembling from his head to his tail. He first thought that the dragon was angry at him for trying to touch him, but after a few moments of staring at each other, Tannluth lowered his head and gently sighed. H'cup stared at his dragon for a few moments, but was shocked to see tears falling from the corner of Tannluth's eyes. H'cup didn't think it was physically possible for dragons to cry, but maybe this was something else that was unique about his lifemate.

"Tannluth? A-are you _crying_?"

Tannluth didn't answer, just nodded his black head.

"Why are you crying?"

Tannluth didn't reply right away. H'cup was about to ask him a second time when he barely heard;

_:I'm s-scared, H'cup:_

H'cup was shocked speechless. He sat with his jaw hanging for almost a full minute before he shook his head and asked; "Scared? What is it that you're scared of, Tannluth? Is it the other dragons? Their riders? Thread? What is it that's bothering you? Talk to me, please? Tannluth, I'm your best friend and lifemate. If I can't help you, then no one can."

Tannluth plopped down to the ground and laid his head on his paws. H'cup thought he was going to get the silent treatment again but Tannluth answered; _:No, none of the dragons or their riders are bothering me, H'cup, and we're too well protected in the Weyr for thread to ever be a threat. The problem is with __me__: _

H'cup blinked; "You? What's wrong with you that has you scared?"

_:Everything! I'm starting to believe the ones who called me a freak are actually right! I mean, I look different, I think different, and now I have an ability that scares me halfway_ between_! Maybe Pern would have been better off if I had never hatched!:_

H'cup was indignant and said so; "Don't think like that Tannluth, you're the best thing that's happened to me since coming here to Pern. So you're a little different from the other dragons here? SO WHAT! I'll take you over any dragon on Pern! That's a fact!"

H'cup thought his little pep talk would cheer up Tannluth, but it seemed to have the opposite effect as his dragon became more agitated. His eyes were orange and whirling with red streaks as he nearly shouted back at him;

_:NO! You don't understand! I'm a monster now, A MONSTER! How can you still love someone like me?:_

H'cup tried a different approach. "Tannluth, you said that this power of yours is similar to the Red Death. Is that what scares you so badly?"

Tannluth barely nodded his head and whispered; _:Yes:_

"And you're afraid you'll turn out to be just like her?"

Again, an almost inaudible; _:Yes:_

"Then the solution is simple, just don't use this power any more. You said that you have to call up every negative emotion you had just to bring it about. That sounds like a lot of effort, so it would be easier to just not use it!"

Tannluth shook his head. _:You STILL don't understand! The reason I'm scared is not just that I was able to call up the power, but the fact that it was EASY to do so! And by the spirits of my ancestors, it felt GOOD doing it too!:_

H'cup sat back in shock but nodded his head and said; "I think I've got it. You're afraid you'll become addicted to this power whenever you use it."

Tannluth exhaled audibly in relief. _:NOW you understand! That's probably why the demon was so nasty in the first place. Centuries of using her negative emotions all the time rotted her soul from the inside out. I'll do anything to avoid a fate like that! ANYTHING!:_

"Including suiciding _between_?"

Tannluth didn't answer, just nodded his head.

"You hate this power that much?"

_:You have to remember H'cup, I spent one hundred fifty turns under that power. Prophet Singers are considered amongst my kind to be the pinnacle of draconic evolution. We were the smartest, fastest, sleekest, and nearly the strongest dragons on Earth. We could have easily ruled over all of dragon kind, but instead we used our abilities to teach, lead, and protect. Yet, for all of my power and abilities, the demon swatted my entire family down as if they were flies. She then ensnared me and was able to keep me as her slave with the tiniest gossamer wisp of her power:_

"And you felt this power when you directed it at Stoth?"

Tannluth nodded and said; _:Yes. You heard that he screamed when I directed my mind surge at him?:_ H'cup nodded. _:What you don't know is that Stoth screamed because I MADE him move out of my way! A dragon over three times my size and much older than this body I now inhabit, but he was just as helpless as I was when I was the demon's slave!:_

"R'mart said that both of Stoth's eardrums were ruptured and his sinuses were damaged. Did you do that to him?"

Tannluth lowered his head and his eyes whirled a bit faster. _:I don't know if I was the one who hurt him or if his injuries were the result of him trying to resist me. It could be that the power affects Pern's dragons that way. In any case, it's a damned good reason to NEVER use the power again!:_

"As if you really need an excuse, but sounds good to me. Listen, Tannluth, I've been thinking about this new ability of yours and I think I have an explanation. Would you like to hear it?"

Tannluth's eyes were still yellow, but whirled a bit slower. He flicked his ears forward and said; _:I'm all ears:_

Despite the tension between them, H'cup broke up laughing. "You did that on purpose, didn't you?"

Tannluth's eyes were now green as he chuckled and said; _:Yep, I figured we both could use a little laugh:_

H'cup wiped his eyes and said; "You're right. Thanks, buddy."

_:Anytime:_

"Okay, back to my theory. You say that negative emotions bring the power forth in your mind? STRONG negative emotions, like fear, anger, rage?"

_:Yes, that is what was going through my mind at the time. How does this help me?:_

"Bear with me now, I'm trying to work through this myself. Now, think back. Were there any other times since you hatched that you had strong negative emotions?"

Tannluth was quiet for a few moments and then looked up at H'cup.

_:Yes, there were at least two times I've felt those emotions strongly. The first time is the day I hatched and the second time is when you fought Spreth's rider. Both of those times I felt strong anger and rage, but why is this the only time the power manifested itself?:_

"Because this time I was feeling those emotions as well. I think that _both _of us have to be feeling them simultaneously in order for the power to work."

Tannluth shook his head and said; _:No, that doesn't make sense, H'cup. It was MY mind that generated the power that controlled Stoth:_

"Yes, but why didn't you have the power those other two times? On your hatching day, Granth was about to Impress me. I remember that you were angry that another dragon almost stole me away from you forever. You screamed at him, but he jumped away because he was startled, NOT because you controlled him!"

_:Yes, I remember that I screamed at Granth that you were mine! I was in a near state of panic and angry that he was going to Impress you before I did! Why didn't I have the mind power over him? Could it be because I was too young?:_

"No, I think it's because I was caught up in watching everyone on the Hatching Ground Impress their dragons. I was feeling the wonder of Impression when Granth looked at me because I thought he was the one I was talking to. I wasn't feeling ANY negative emotions when you broke your shell."

_:Okay, let's say I accept your explanation for the first time, but what about the second? That time you fought with Spreth's rider, you HAD to be feeling negative emotions! I know I was, I was ready to kill the man! I was so angry and nearly panicked that he would take you away from me!:_

"I remember how panicked you were, but believe me when I say that I wasn't feeling the same emotions as you. Yes, I was scared and nervous that I wouldn't see an attack that might end me, but I kept my fear and hatred in check so I could focus on Bentrel's movements and respond accordingly."

_:Hmmm, okay, that explains the first two times, but what happened this last time? What was going through your head at the time I struck out at Stoth?:_

"THAT is when I felt angry and helpless. I was blinded by a bag over my head and had my arms pinned to my sides so I couldn't fight back. From what little I heard of their conversation, I think they were taking me further into the cavern to arrange a fatal "accident" for me. You would have then gone _between_ as a result. The thought of that made me so angry I could hardly think! You must have felt it as well."

Tannluth was silent for a few moments before he said; _:You know, you may be on to something. I felt my rage boil over into something I've never felt before and I directed it at Stoth. It may or may not have come from our linked minds, but I don't see how I could have generated that much emotion on my own. I'm still a bit skeptical, but let's say we both have to be feeling these emotions for the power to work. How do we make sure this never happens again?:_

"I'm not too sure if we should say _never_, Tannluth. After all, it DID save both our lives."

Tannluth groaned and said; _:All right, extreme emergencies ONLY! Satisfied?:_

"Quite. I suppose I'll have to learn to keep my emotions in check from now on. It'll be pretty easy for me, considering I was Berk's village screwup before I met you back on Earth. Being the scrawniest Viking in a village full of hulking behemoths I had to learn to vent my anger in creative ways."

_:How did you do that?:_

"I got creative. I would spend hours in the forge just hammering at things until it formed shapes. Sometimes they were useful things, but most of the time it was just a way for me to blow off steam. Once I met you, however, I would release my frustrations in a way totally new to Vikings."

_:Is it what I think it is?:_

"Yep, flying. It was incredible, the first time we flew together. I just couldn't get enough of it. Every time I visited you, we had to go flying. I can't imagine what it was like for you, being a flying creature and grounded for the time it took for me to build your flying rig."

_:It was like having part of my soul ripped out. You gave me back the sky when you gave me that tailfin, H'cup. That is why I never refused to go flying with you no matter how many times you asked:_

H'cup stood and walked over to where Tannluth was laying on the ground. He sat next to him and stretched out his left hand over the dragon's muzzle. Tannluth turned a blue whirling eye on him before closing his eyes and pushing his snout into H'cup's open palm. H'cup smiled and Tannluth crooned as he stroked the smooth scales of the dragon's head.

_:I suppose I've been acting rather silly, havent I?:_

"Like a crazy fire lizard." Heimdall gave an indignant squawk from his shoulder_. _"Okay, okay_, _sorry, a crazy green fire lizard! Satisfied?" Heimdall chirped in the affirmative._  
><em>

H'cup smiled at both his friends. He continued to stroke Tannluth's eye ridges as he asked him; "Going back to what we were saying about flying, have you been doing those wing exercises the weyrlingmaster suggested?"

Tannluth's eyes were whirling as he said; _:Oops, I guess I have been slacking lately!:_

"Well, do you want to go flying in three or four months? You'll never do it unless you strengthen those wing muscles! Hop to it, mister! Let's see you stretch those wings!"

Tannluth sat back on his haunches and began flapping his wings horizontally with the ground to get the full range of motion. Heimdall was blown off his shoulder, squawking the whole time. H'cup leaned into the miniature wind storm generated by his huge wings and smiled.

_"Heh, looks like we might be able to fly even sooner than that!"_

* * *

><p><em>AN: It's said that the eyes are the windows to the soul. With the dragons of Pern that is especially true because the colors of their eyes tells their emotional state._

_Blue - happy and contented._

_Green - somewhat happy but concerned_

_Yellow - worried or sad_

_Orange - very sad or slightly angry_

_Red - WATCH OUT! Extremely angry! Usually the color of their eyes when fighting Thread_

_When H'cup walked up to Tannluth, he forced his eyes to change color, but he could only get them to green. It's the equivalent of a sad person putting on a fake smile when someone asks how they are doing, they smile even if they are miserable inside._

_**As always, thanks for reading and PLEASE use the blue button to leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, (and me) very happy!**  
><em>


	15. Chapter 15 Flying Again

**Chapter 15 - Flying Again**

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><p><em>AN: Hello again, it's another update!_

_First off, let me say thanks to **slytherinsal** for your review of the last chapter (and all the other chapters before)._

_A little word about reviews. I mean it when I say I appreciate reviews. Good, bad, positive, negative, I don't care. I'm a fairly new writer and feedback is the only way I can improve my stories. Of course, the feedback I'm talking about is the review. You don't even have to write something long. If you liked the chapter, write "love". If you hated it, write "love" (just kidding). You get the idea. It doesn't have to be long and rambling, even short reviews help me. _

_Anyway, on to the story..._

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

* * *

><p>Fifteen days later, H'cup was at the lake scrubbing a dry spot on Tannluth's hide.<p>

"Right here?"

_:No, a little lower and to the left:_

"Ah, I see it." H'cup scrubbed the spot and Tannluth purred in relief. "Better?"

_:Much. Thank you:_

"You're welcome." H'cup noticed some activity around the entrance to the main cavern. Three brown dragons were gathered around a smaller blue. A man was led to the blue dragon with his wrists bound together.

"Tannluth, is that blue dragon Stoth?"

_:Yes, it is. He refuses to look in this direction:_

"Why is that?"

_:He's afraid of me:_

"Afraid? It's been over two sevendays since the...incident. How could he remember it that long?"

_:I don't know. All the other dragons have forgotten exactly what I did, they just know I did something. Stoth, however, remembers what I did and fears me:_

"Well, it looks like they're going to escort Stoth and K'nal to their exile in Southern. We won't have to worry about them anymore."

_:Perhaps you're right, but are there any others in the Weyr who share the same feelings about us?:_

"I'm not sure Tannluth. Hopefully, we got rid of all the bad weeds."

_:Hopefully:_

H'cup and Tannluth watched the group mount their dragons. Stoth still refused to look in their direction, but H'cup was able to momentarily catch the gaze of K'nal. He could still see hatred burning in the eyes of the older dragonrider.

H'cup sucked in a breath. He whispered; "What did I ever do to him?"

_:Who are you talking about?:_

"K'nal. I could see he still wants me dead. What did I ever do to make him hate me so much?"

_:Maybe it's not you, maybe I'm the one he hates. Or maybe he's just a stupid, hidebound old fool who wouldn't recognize something new if it came up and slapped him upside his idiot head!:_

H'cup chuckled at that; "Are you volunteering for 'slap upside the head' duty?"

_:Naw, it'll be a wasted effort. Besides, he's leaving. Like you said, we won't have to worry about him anymore:_

H'cup watched the group of dragons launch themselves in the air. He kept watching until they spiraled up over the weyr bowl and disappeared _between_. Turning back to his task of scrubbing his dragon, he rinsed off the last of the soap suds and said; "All finished, let's get you oiled now, shall we?"

Tannluth bounded out of the water as he said; _:Sounds good to me:_

"Hey, keep your tail out of the dirt! You don't want that mixing with the oil, do you?"

_:Yeah, yeah, I know, I've got it! You don't have to tell me every time!:_

"Well, it seems I do. I always have to brush the mud off your tail before I oil you!"

_:Well, get your scrawny butt over here and oil me! I don't want to have to hold my tail up all day!:_

H'cup laughed and said; "Coming, your Majesty, coming."

As H'cup started oiling his friend's hide, his attention was drawn to a group of dragons on one of the upper ledges. He asked Tannluth; "Hey buddy, you see that group of dragons on that ledge up there? Can you find out what they're up to?"

Tannluth looked to where he was pointing and asked; _:Why, is there something wrong?:_

"No, just curious to see what they're doing."

Tannluth was silent for a few moments and replied; _:The weyrlingmaster is teaching another group of weyrlings. This is the first time they will be going _between_:_

"I wasn't aware of another weyrling class."

_:Apparently, there are several going on at the same time. It turns out we're just the newest, the youngest:_

As they watched the group of weyrlings, H'cup became aware that Tannluth was trembling slightly. When he looked at his eyes, he could see that they were yellow and whirling fast.

"Hey buddy, you okay?"

Tannluth turned to look at him and said; _:I'm worried, H'cup. Several of the riders are very nervous and it's unsettling their dragons:_

"Well, if they paid attention to their lessons, they would know that the first time going _between_ was the most dangerous one. It should keep them from making mistakes."

_:A little healthy respect I could understand, maybe even a little nervousness. But H'cup, some of those riders are petrified! That can't be good at all!:_

"Well, there's not much we could do from here, buddy. Try to see if you can talk to their dragons and calm them down a bit, maybe it will filter back to their riders."

_:Good idea, I'll give it a try:_

H'cup and Tannluth watched the first of the weyrlings launch themselves from the ledge and fly to the star stones. They hovered there for a few moments before turning and flying to the other side of the weyr bowl. They turned around and faced the direction they came from and went _between_. H'cup looked back to the star stones and started counting. When he reached the count of eight, the pair reappeared over their original coordinates. H'cup and Tannluth both breathed a sigh of relief. Some of the other weyrlings noticed that H'cup wasn't oiling his dragon anymore and walked up to him.

"Hey H'cup, what are you looking at?"

H'cup turned and noticed it was S'nar. "Oh, hey S'nar. Tannluth and I were watching another weyrling class going _between_ for the first time."

"Isn't that dangerous?"

"Very. Tannluth is a bit nervous because some of the weyrlings are scared stiff. We're hoping they keep their heads together so they don't make mistakes. There goes the next one."

S'nar looked up as a bronze dragon launched himself from the ledge. The dragon stopped and hovered over the star stones before turning and flying to the other side of the weyr bowl. They barely got turned around before they disappeared _between_. Tannluth gave a little squeak of fear and H'cup tightened his throat as he looked at the star stones. He counted to twelve and the dragon didn't reappear. He was about to moan in despair when the bronze burst out of _between_ exactly where he was supposed to be. H'cup, S'nar, and Tannluth all exhaled in relief.

S'nar said; "That was close!"

"What happened Tannluth?"

_:I talked to the bronze Urorth and he said his rider got scared and forgot the coordinates. Apparently, he pulled himself together and managed to find their way back:_

S'nar asked; "What did Tannluth say?"

"He said that the rider momentarily forgot the coordinates. If that can happen to a bronze rider, I'm a little nervous to see how the rest of the class fares!"

H'cup and S'nar were joined by the rest of their weyrling class. They could hear weyrlingmaster M'dar nearly screaming at the young riders assembled on the ledge.

H'cup winced and said; "I don't think that's going to help."

Tannluth said; _:No, it's not. In fact, he's making it worse:_

"Worse? Tannluth, you've got to tell Elonth to tell his rider what you've said to me! You've got to..."

_:H'CUP! I've already tried. Elonth told me that I didn't know what I was talking about. He said he and his rider have been teaching this way for years and didn't see a need to change anything:_

"Didn't see a...? They nearly lost a BRONZE, for Faranth's sake!"

Tannluth sighed; _:I know, but what can we do?:_

H'cup ground his teeth in frustration. "I don't know, buddy. I don't know."

S'nar pointed up and said; "There goes the next one, it's a blue this time."

Everyone looked up and followed the blue dragon's progress. He flew to the star stones, hovered momentarily, flew across the weyr bowl, turned around, and went _between_. H'cup and the rest of his class turned to the star stones and began a slow count. At the count of eight there was still no dragon. Twelve, no dragon. At fifteen, H'cup's guts started knotting up. At twenty, he turned and asked his dragon what happened. Tannluth's head was bowed and his eyes were closed, but H'cup could see tears at the corners of his eyes.

_:They are dead, lost _between_ forever:_

Tannluth lifted his head and joined in the mournful keen that all dragons perform to honor the passing of one of their kind.

o0o0o0o

H'cup, T'yner, S'nar, and the rest of his weyrling class were in one of the classrooms halfheartedly listening to the weyrlingmaster. Everyone in the weyr was feeling down. Earlier that day they lost two more dragons, a green and a brown, in their first trip _between_. Losing a dragon was bad enough, but to lose three in one day was almost unbearable. All the dragons will be inconsolable for days.

M'dar was tapping his foot. "I know this is hard on the lot of you, but it's the nature of learning how to ride a dragon. It's hard, dangerous work. Today you found out just how dangerous it can be. If you lose your head _between_, both you and your dragon will be lost forever. You're going to hear this from now until you make your first _between_ flight, but you have GOT to have proper coordinates and KEEP them in your head until you are safely out of _between_. You have seen what can happen to a dragonrider pair when they lose their coordinates. You haven't seen what happens when they get the WRONG ones!"

H'cup raised his hand. "Sir, what can happen?"

M'dar stopped and took a breath; "There's not an example here, thank Faranth, but at Fort Weyr there's a skeleton of a dragon and his rider."

H'cup shook his head; "That's it, just a skeleton?"

M'dar raised his finger and said; "Ah, but I didn't say WHERE the skeleton was, did I?" After looking around the class and seeing the confused looks, he said; "If you get a chance to visit Fort Weyr, go to the base of the ledge where the star stones are. The skeleton is half-buried in the rock."

After looking around at the shocked faces, M'dar nodded and said; "Yes, that is what can happen if you come out of between in the wrong place, so make damned sure you have the right coordinates! We will be talking more about this in the future. I just wanted to emphasize the point while it's still fresh in all your minds."

S'nar raised his hand. When M'dar acknowledged him, he asked; "Sir, how often is a dragonrider pair lost on their first trip _between_?"

M'dar shook his head; "It's unfortunate, but we usually lose one per weyrling class. This last group was highly unusual in that we lost three. It has been quite a while since we had a class where ALL the weyrlings made it safely _between_."

S'nar stood a little straighter and said; "Sir, I promise that everyone in this class will make it safely through their _between_ flight!"

M'dar raised his eyebrows and said; "Son, that's quite a few months away, but if you can help your classmates survive their first flight, no one will be happier about it than me!" M'dar looked around at the rest of the class and said; "That will be all for today. Take the rest of the day off and be with your dragons."

o0o0o0o

H'cup walked across the weyr bowl to where Tannluth was lying under a tree. He could see that his dragon was upset. His eyes were whirling orange and he was pulling blades of grass out of the ground with his forepaws.

_"Well, looks like I'll have to cheer him up!"_ he thought.

"Hey, buddy, how are you doing?"

Tannluth looked at H'cup, his eyes becoming more yellow.

_:Oh, hey H'cup. I'm okay. You know, breathing in, breathing out:_

"That's not okay, that's just surviving."

Tannluth sighed and said; _:I resemble that remark:_

H'cup shook his head and said; "Well, that won't do, that won't do at all. Come on now, get up! Show me some of those wing exercises you've been doing."

Tannluth laid his head on his paws and said; _:Go away, H'cup. I don't feel like it today:_

"Nope, not gonna happen. You're going to get off your partially scaled carcass and move around whether you want to or not!"

Tannluth's head came up and he growled low in his throat; _:What is WRONG with you? Do you realize what happened today? Three dragons just died today! THREE!:_

H'cup's tone became more somber; "Yes, Tannluth, three dragons and dragonriders died today. We are part of a fighting weyr that is supposed to keep Thread from destroying all life on this planet. Fighting Thread is very dangerous and dragons ARE going to get hurt and some of them ARE going to die! Now, you can either learn to accept that and move on, or you can just give up right now and take us both _between_! What's it going to be?"

Tannluth's eyes were whirling a bit faster. _:You think that I just want to give up and die?:_

"I don't know what to think Tannluth, but all this moping around can't be good."

Tannluth said quietly; _:H'cup, do you know why dragons keen when one of us dies?:_ H'cup shook his head. _:It's because all of us __feel__ it when another dragon passes on. And today, we had to feel the deaths of three dragons. Do you realize what that does to us?:_

H'cup sat beside Tannluth and stroked the scales of his neck. "Believe it or not, buddy, I think I do. When we were still fighting against dragons back in Berk, we would lose one or two Vikings every few raids. The entire village felt the loss of each of those lives because it meant that the rest of us had to take up the work they left behind. So, yes, I do understand a little of how you feel. That's why it's important to get you up and moving!"

_:Why me? Why am I the only one who has to do wing exercises?:_

"Because of your memory. The other dragons will only remember this for a few days at the most. You, however, have a much longer memory. So, the sooner we can get your mind on other things, the better off you'll be."

_:What about you? Aren't you going to mourn the loss of your comrades?:_

"Yes I will, but not right now. Later, I'll probably ask the headwoman for a skin of Benden Red or some Tillek White and drink a toast to the memory of our fallen brothers. Remember, buddy, I'm a Viking at heart! We preferred to celebrate the life of those who died, not mourn their death. But the time for that is later, right now I want to see some wing action!"

_:You're not going to give up, are you?:_

"Never!"

Tannluth groaned audibly and said; _:All right, all right, I'm getting up. I know I'll never rest when you're like this. What do you want me to do first?:_

H'cup rubbed his hands together and said; "All right, let's start with some stretching and going through the full range of motion."

H'cup had Tannluth stretch his wings out as far as they would go and slowly fold them back in. He had him repeat this five times. After the fifth, he had him stretch his wings out again and this time he had Tannluth rotate them back and forth as far as they would go. Keeping his wings stretched out, H'cup started applying pressure to the wingtip to see how long Tannluth could hold it up. H'cup was surprised that Tannluth was taking almost his entire weight on just his wingtip!

"Tannluth, what kind of exercises have you been doing? Your wings have gotten very strong!"

_:You really think so? I didn't feel that much weight on my wing:_

"Tannluth, you nearly lifted me off the ground by just your wingtip!"

Tannluth was bouncing now, looking around and getting excited. He ran over to a jumble of rocks and stuck a wingtip under one of them.

_:H'cup, come over here and hang on to my wingtip: _

"Umm, Tannluth, what are you doing?"

_:Don't worry, I just want to try something. Grab my wing and hold on!:_

H'cup grabbed the tip of Tannluth's wing and he lifted it slowly. H'cup could feel his arms stretch out until they were over his head and Tannluth continued to lift his wing. H'cup was now on the tips of his toes and the wing continued to rise. Slowly, H'cup was lifted until he was hanging a few inches off the ground. Tannluth's head was turned to look back at him, it looked like he wasn't working hard at all.

"Hey, buddy, how you doing?"

Tannluth's eyes were whirling green. _:It's a little work holding you up, but I'm good. How about you?:_

"Oh, you know me, just hanging around."

Tannluth snorted in amusement and slowly lowered his wing to set H'cup down. Once his feet touched the ground, he stood back in amazement.

"I have never heard of a dragon being able to do that! I ask again, what kind of exercises have you been doing?"

Tannluth said; _:I've been doing the exercises the weyrlingmaster recommended, but I've been doing a few of my own as well:_

"A few of your own? What's wrong with the ones he taught us?"

_:Oh, those are fine for movement and muscle tone, but they do little to build up actual strength:_

"Why don't you show me what you did to get this strong?"

Tannluth started walking to the side of the bowl. _:I'm going to need as much clear space as possible. Can you get those people and dragons to move out of the way?: _He pointed with his muzzle straight ahead. H'cup looked to where Tannluth indicated. There were a few groups of people in the weyr bowl, but they were at least several dozen dragonlengths away!

"Tannluth, you're going to need ALL that space to run?"

_:Yep. You've seen how wide my wings are, I don't want to run into anything:_

"How do you train yourself then? I know I don't see you clearing out the weyr bowl during the day."

_:Simple, I run at night after everyone is asleep:_

"_After everyone is_...? Why you sneaky...! Why did you tell me what you were doing?"

_:Remember H'cup, you have a curfew. I don't understand it myself, but I didn't want you to get in trouble:_

"Well, thank you for your consideration."

_:You're welcome. Now, could you take care of the non-dragonriders? I will alert the dragons myself:_

H'cup could hear Tannluth broadcasting to the dragons as he waved his arms to get the attention of the non-dragonriders.

"Excuse me, but could I get everyone to move to one side of the weyr bowl or the other? I need to clear a path for my dragon to practice flying. Please move to the side, thank you very much. That's it, move along now, thank you for your cooperation." Once the area was clear, he sent to Tannluth; _"Okay, buddy, it's all yours."_

Tannluth stretched out his wings and bunched the muscles of his legs. H'cup thought at first that he was going to leap off the ground and start flying, but he took off forward at a dead run. Once he had a good amount of speed going, he angled his wings downward and kept them there. H'cup could see the amount of effort it took just to hold his wings at that angle. He noticed that it also made it harder for Tannluth to run and he slowed down considerably. By the time he made it across the weyr bowl, he had slowed down to a trot and was breathing heavily.

"Wow! That was excellent, Tannluth! I'm impressed!" Several bystanders were nodding and applauding as well.

_:Whew, that was the fastest and the farthest I've ever run like that! Give me a moment to catch my breath, I want to try something else:_

"Take your time, bud. Take your time. Would you like some water?"

_:A little water would be nice right now:_

Fortunately, they were close to a cistern, so H'cup grabbed a bucket, filled it, and brought it to his thirsty and grateful dragon. Sticking his muzzle in the bucket, Tannluth slurped noisily until the bucket was empty.

_:Thanks, I needed that:_

"Anytime. You feeling okay to try again?"

_:Yep. I better get this done before someone else wanders in my way:_

"Well, the way is still clear. Whenever you're ready!"

Tannluth spread his wings out their full span, crouched low, and took off again in the opposite direction. He ran a bit farther than he did the first time so he was able to build up more speed. H'cup was a little worried that he was going to strain his wings if he angled them down again.

_"Hey, buddy, don't you think you're going a little fast for this exercise? You could overstress your wings if you angle them downward."_

_:Don't worry, H'cup, I'm not going to overstress my wings. Besides, who said I was angling them down?:_

_"What? Then that means you're...TANNLUTH, NO! You can't fly right now, you're too young!"_

_:Pffft! Watch this and tell me I can't fly!:_

As he said that, Tannluth slightly angled his wings up. He was still running, so he got a few more strides forward before his feet slowly lifted off the ground. He instinctively tucked his legs to his sides to reduce drag and continued to glide across the weyr bowl. H'cup and everyone else looked on in disbelief.

"Tannluth, you're flying! YOU'RE FLYING! _WOOO! HOOO!_"

_:I told you I could fly! **I TOLD YOU! YEEEAHHH!**:_

His words were matched by a loud and long bugle of pure joy which was echoed by every dragon in the weyr. This so startled Tannluth that he faltered momentarily in the air, but he recovered quickly and glided down to land. Turning around, he folded his wings to his sides and trotted back to where H'cup was standing.

"Tannluth, that was incredibly AWESOME! Those exercises really paid off, didn't they?"

_:Yes, they did. You didn't think I could do it, could you?:_

"I'll admit, not at first, but you made a believer out of me!"

Tannluth looked over H'cup's shoulder and said; _:Uh oh, here comes the weyrlingmaster, and he doesn't look too happy!:_

"Aww shells! I'm in for it now, aren't I?"

_:Don't worry H'cup, I'll tell him it was MY idea to fly, not yours:_

"Yeah, but I've got responsibility for you! If anything happens to you, it's MY butt in a sling!"

_:Like I said, don't worry. It'll be all right:_

M'dar marched up behind H'cup and announced his presence by shouting; "Rider H'cup, what in Faranth's name do you think you're doing out here!"

H'cup turned around to address the weyrlingmaster, but before he could get a word out to explain what happened, he was shoved out of the way by his dragon.

_:Actually weyrlingmaster, it's me you should be talking to, not H'cup. It was MY idea to try flying, not his. He just wanted me to perform wing exercises and I just took it to the next step. I'm sorry if this distressed you in any way, but please don't blame my rider for my actions:_

M'dar was a little taken back that a young dragon would address him this way. He cleared his throat and said; "Well now, Tannluth, is it?" Tannluth nodded. "Well, Tannluth, you are supposed to be learning how to fly in stages. Young dragons at two months of age are only supposed to perform the stretching exercises to get the muscles aligned and help strengthen the tendons. You're NOT supposed to fly that young! It's just not done! You could hurt yourself!"

Tannluth looked the weyrlingmaster straight in the eye and took his time to compose his reply.

He said;_ :Weyrlingmaster M'dar, you have been teaching young dragonrider pairs for some time now, have you?: _

M'dar nodded.

_:I see. And in all that time, have you ever encountered a dragon like me?:_

M'dar shook his head slowly.

_:Uh huh. So, do you think training methods might differ slightly with dragons who ARE different?:_

"Not really, I've heard that even Ruth went through the same types of training. They just waited longer to see if he would grow a bit larger."

_:Yes, Ruth, I've heard of him. He's a bit smaller than any full-grown dragon on Pern, but he's still a dragon OF Pern. I, however, am part Prophet Singer and part Pern brown dragon. It is that Prophet Singer heritage that gives me a stronger body and larger wings:_

"But at only two months of age a dragon's wings, tendons, and muscles are still growing. There's not enough wing area to support them in flight. Not to mention that the muscles aren't strong enough to hold their wings properly throughout the flight."

Tannluth cocked his head to the side; _:You don't think my wings are strong enough?:_

M'dar folded his arms and said; "No, I do not."

Tannluth nodded; _:Fair enough. H'cup, will you come over here, please? I think a demonstration is in order:_

H'cup followed Tannluth until they were next to some boulders at the base of one of the weyr's cliffs. Tannluth extended his wings and stuck the tip of one wing under a rock to anchor it. When H'cup grabbed the tip of Tannluth's opposite wing, M'dar became alarmed.

"WAIT! STOP! What are you doing? You'll snap his wing in half if you do that!"

H'cup answered; "No sir, I won't. Tannluth and I have done this before. Please just watch, everything will be fine."

M'dar grumbled and said; "Fine. I don't like it, but I won't interfere. Keep in mind H'cup, you're going to be nursing his wing back to health when you break it. I won't be helping you!"

H'cup nodded and said; "I understand, sir." Turning to Tannluth, he grabbed the tip of his wing and said; "Ready."

Tannluth slowly lifted his wing until H'cup's arms were stretched over his head. When H'cup's toes were lifted off the ground. M'dar started to cringe in anticipation of the sickening crack of bones he thought he was going to hear. When it didn't come, he widened his eyes in wonder and disbelief at what he was witnessing. H'cup was hanging off the tip of his dragon's wing! The strength to accomplish that must be incredible! Not to mention the strength of the bones in the wing! Shaking his head and blinking his eyes, he announced that he has seen enough. Lowering H'cup to the ground and folding his wings to his sides, Tannluth turned to look straight at M'dar.

_:Well?:_

M'dar was still shaking his head when he said; "If I had not seen that with my own eyes, I never would have believed it! Tannluth, you've just performed a feat that not many full-grown dragons can do!"

_:Maybe not many Pern dragons can do that weyrlingmaster, but it's a fairly easy feat for a Prophet Singer. We were the fastest flying dragons on Earth, so our wing muscles and bones were extremely strong. It seems I have the same strength in this body as well:_

M'dar was still shaking his head. "You are bound and determined to start flying, aren't you?"

Tannluth stood a little straighter and his eyes were whirling a bit faster.

_:Yes, I am:_

M'dar sighed and said; "Well, it looks like you took away all my reasons for keeping you on the ground, young Tannluth. I suppose we can let you start some LIMITED, SUPERVISED flight training." M'dar emphasized the words when Tannluth started bouncing on the tips of his paws in excitement. "Do you understand these restrictions and will you abide by them?"

Tannluth could barely contain his glee; _:Oh, yes, yes werlingmaster, absolutely!:_

"And you will not take your rider on flights! Is that understood?"

_:Perfectly! My rider stays on the ground!:_

"And no firestone!"

_:Won't touch the stuff!:_

"And absolutely, positively, no trips _between_!"

Tannluth sobered considerably when he said; _:I think you've emphasized clearly just how dangerous it is to go _between_, weyrlingmaster. I promise I won't try it until we receive proper instruction:_

M'dar sighed, nodded and said; "Then you have my permission to start flying."

Tannluth was bouncing again. _:Oh, thank you, thank you very much! Do you mind if I try gliding across the weyr bowl again?:_

"No, I don't mind at all. In fact, I'd enjoy watching you fly!"

Tannluth turned to face the open weyr bowl and took off at a full run. Reaching his top speed, he opened his wings and tilted them up slightly to gain a bit of lift and glided gracefully across the bowl. M'dar stood next to H'cup admiring the black dragon in flight.

"He's really something."

"Yes sir, he is."

"H'cup, I wanted to tell you something. There were two reasons I came out here when your dragon flew. The first one you already know, I was concerned that Tannluth was going to hurt himself. Obviously, he's addressed those concerns quite well. The second reason is one you might not be aware of. When Tannluth bugled, did you notice that every dragon in the weyr bugled as well?"

H'cup nodded and said; "Yes sir, but I just thought the other dragons were happy watching Tannluth fly for the first time."

M'dar shook his head and said; "You didn't hear what I said H'cup. I said EVERY dragon in the weyr bugled at the same time, not just those out on the ledges sunning themselves."

H'cup frowned and asked; "What does that mean, sir?"

"It means, H'cup, that there is another mind power your lifemate has."

H'cup's eyes widened and he took a step back. "WHAT? Oh, no, did he hurt another dragon?"

"Calm yourself, H'cup, everything is fine. None of the dragons were harmed. In fact, look around at the dragons on the ledges."

H'cup turned his head to look at the dragons sunning themselves. He noticed that all the dragons seemed to be relaxed and happy. He looked at their eyes and saw that the eyes of every one of them were blue.

"Blue? How can that be? Three dragons just died this morning! I know dragon memories are short, but they can't have forgotten it so soon, can they?"

M'dar answered; "No, they haven't forgotten it yet, but I think they caught a bit of the happiness your friend was feeling the first time he flew. Elonth told me it was similar to the power he felt two sevendays ago, but this was a blast of pure joy which every dragon in the weyr felt! This is quite an unusual ability your dragon has, H'cup. It's something we'll have to explore as you two begin to train."

"Yes, sir. This new ability sounds like it has some positive aspects. I'll have to discuss it with Tannluth to see how he feels about it. He absolutely hates the other aspect of his power. He hurt Stoth with it and never wants to use it again."

"I don't blame him. Oh, look, here's flying back this way. Ahhh, I love watching dragons in flight! Your Tannluth is going to be an excellent flier, I can see it already!"

H'cup's chest swelled with pride as he watched his dragon come in for a landing a short distance in front of him. Tannluth bounded up to him and nearly knocked him to the ground in his excitement. H'cup had to laugh because he looked like a puppy.

_:H'cup, H'cup, did you see me? Did you see me fly? That felt INCREDIBLE!:_

H'cup petted him on his snout and stroked his neck as he said; "Yeah, buddy, I saw you. You were GREAT! I noticed you were just going straight each time you went up, but we'll get you doing turns in no time!"

Tannluth turned around to look at his tail and said; _:Yeah, I'm not used to making turns with this tail yet. It's a little different from my old one, but I'll work it out:_

"I'm sure you will. Hey, buddy, let's go over to this tree over here, there's something we need to discuss."

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><p><em>Lots of dialog in this one, hope you liked it.<em>

_**As always, please leave a review after reading. Reviews make Tannluth, H'cup, Heimdall, (and especially, me) very happy!**_


	16. Chapter 16 A New Clutch

**Chapter 16 - A New Clutch**

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><p><em>AN: Hey everyone, it's another update!_

_First off, a shout out to **slytherinsal, Rhavis, Pern Dreamer**, **ZerORocks, 9Tail-Naruto, Tagesh**, and one **anonymous reviewer**, THANKS guys and gals for your feedback! I really do appreciate it._

_To the anonymous reviewer, I know you have some concerns about how the story is going. If you send me a PM, I can discuss them with you._

_With that said, ON TO THE STORY!_

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p><em>:I don't know, H'cup, I just don't know:<em>

"But Tannluth, we can use this ability to help the other dragons! Look at what it did for the dragons in this Weyr. They would have been miserable for days before they forgot about it!"

_:I realize that, but it's a slippery slope you're talking about. It's manipulation, pure and simple:_

"I'm not talking about making the dragons your slaves, just help them out every now and then."

_:And when does it stop, can you tell me that? You've said it yourself, this is a very dangerous duty we have fighting Thread and dragons and dragonriders will die. Suppose I do start using this ability to help the dragons get over their grief, what then? Very shortly, we'll be asked to use this power EVERY time a dragon dies. Like flaming Thread, it will be a duty we'll be expected to perform. Things might be fine for a while, but what will happen to the dragons if something unexpected happens to us once they become dependent on us? How will they cope with their grief whenever another dragonrider pair gets killed?:_

H'cup was stunned into silence, Tannluth brought up a very good point. The closest analogy he could think of is fellis addiction. Once someone started abusing it regularly, it was very hard for them to break the habit, even if they weren't in any physical pain.

Tannluth sighed and said; _:I suppose we could use this ability for emergencies only. I would be willing to experiment to see what is necessary to trigger it since it didn't hurt any dragons, but I want to severely limit the times we use this power:_

H'cup stroked Tannluth's eye ridges and said; "I think I understand where you're coming from, buddy. You don't want the dragons to get addicted to this ability you have."

Tannluth purred at H'cup's ministrations and said; _:You got it. It may sound cruel, but the dragons have to learn how to cope with their own emotions. We won't ALWAYS be there for them to help them through rough spots:_

"Well, not always, but hopefully we'll be able to stick around for a while."

o0o0o0o

Unbeknownst to H'cup and Tannluth, one of Telgar's junior queens, Realth, had her mating flight a month before Tannluth's hatching. She was now in the Hatching Cavern, prodding the sand and was starting to lay her eggs. When she was finished, her rider allowed for small groups to come in and view the result. Everyone _oohed_ and _ahhed_ at the sight of the twenty nine eggs she laid, including a large golden egg nestled safely between her forepaws.

Search riders started flying out the very next day. They would return with candidates and other times returning empty handed. Special emphasis was placed on finding suitable female candidates for the queen hatchling. A few days later, a brown dragon landed and deposited a female candidate for the queen egg. S'nar was the first among the weyrling class to spot her.

"Who is _that_? She carries herself like a Lady Holder!"

H'cup asked Tannluth; _"Hey, buddy, can you find out from that dragon where they came from and if he knows the name of that candidate?"_

_:Sure, give me a moment: _Tannluth was silent as he queried the brown dragon. _:Klath tell me that they came from a small hold near Lemos. He said the girl's name is Chandara. He can't tell me anything else about her:_

_"Thanks, buddy." _Turning to S'nar, he said; "Tannluth said that her name is Chandara and she came from somewhere near Lemos Hold. He said the brown who picked her up doesn't know much else about her."

S'nar answered; "Well, she looks pretty sure of herself, not to mention that she's got poise, class and is very easy on the eyes!" He followed her with his eyes as she walked into the candidate barracks and continued to stare dreamily at the empty doorway. H'cup waved his hand in front of his eyes and started laughing when he got no reaction.

"Boys, I think our brave bronze rider is smitten!" The entire weyrling class laughed right along with him, but S'nar didn't seem to care.

"Laugh all you want, I'm going to find out more about her!"

o0o0o0o

During the evening meal, S'nar excused himself from the weyrling table and made his way to the candidates table to talk to Chandara. H'cup, T'yner, and the rest of the weyrlings turned to watch his progress. S'nar introduced himself and sat down at her table. Everyone watched for a few minutes before H'cup turned back to look at the rest of his group.

"Well fellas, we'll know soon enough."

T'yner asked him; "What will we know, H'cup?"

"Whether that's our new Queenrider or not."

Ch'ser, one of the other bronze weyrlings said; "It's up to the queen hatchling to decide who her rider is going to be."

H'cup nodded and said; "I know that, Ch'ser. What concerns me is if all the Weyr's hopes are riding on one candidate!"

"You have doubts about her chances?"

"I do. There's something...off about her. I've seen spoiled kids like that before and there's very little chance they will change on their own. I don't think she has what it takes to be a Weyrwoman."

"Don't worry H'cup, Realth just laid her eggs a few days ago and it will be at least four or five sevendays before they hatch. I'm sure the search riders will be bringing in more candidates soon enough. Besides, she's not the only female candidate here!"

"I realize that, but it seems that all the attention is on just one candidate! Hey, that was fast! S'nar's walking back this way. I wonder what went wrong? Uh-oh, he doesn't look happy!"

The other weyrlings turned to watch S'nar as he made his way back to their table, mumbling under his breath the whole time.

"_Sharding, stupid, wherry-headed, spoiled rotten, stuck-up holderbrat!_"

H'cup turned and smiled at him; "Something wrong, S'nar?"

S'nar started to snap at H'cup but thought better of it. Instead, he took a deep breath and said; "It turns out our queen candidate is the eldest daughter of the Holder of Twin Peaks Hold. She heard about the queen egg on the sands and _demanded _to be taken here so she could stand as a candidate!"

"Nothing wrong with that, so what's the problem?"

"The problem is she thinks she's still in her hold! She's under the illusion that since she's going to Impress the queen, all the other riders in the Weyr are there to serve her! I tried explaining to her that she's going to be responsible for the care of her dragon in case she Impresses, but she just scoffed and told me that's what drudges are good for. I got so disgusted that I had to leave before I threw something at her!"

S'nar looked around at the other weyrlings and was surprised at the reaction to his news. None of them seemed shocked and a few were nodding their heads in agreement.

"You don't seem surprised, why is that?"

Ch'ser told him; "Because H'cup said he felt that something was off about her. Turns out he was right!"

S'nar turned to him; "How did you know?"

H'cup shrugged and said; "Because I've seen it before. Being the son of the village chief I had the chance to meet other village leaders. I also had the chance to meet their sons and daughters. Since we were all Vikings, most of us grew up knowing hardship and hard work, but a few of those sons and daughters were spoiled from the day they were born! I learned how to spot spoiled children like that and avoided them."

S'nar nodded and said; "Useful skill, but why didn't you warn me?"

"And miss getting to see our mighty bronze rider shot down in defeat?" S'nar started to turn red in the face, but H'cup patted him on the shoulder and said; "Sorry S'nar, just kidding. But seriously, you were smitten the moment you laid eyes on her! Do you really think you would have taken my advice and avoided her?"

S'nar glared at H'cup a few moments more before breaking his gaze and shaking his head.

"You're right, I was acting all wherry-headed just because I saw a pretty face! I'll know better next time. But if you know something next time, shake me, hit me over the head with something, but try to warn me!"

H'cup was going to come back with a snappy retort, but smiled and said; "You got it, S'nar."

o0o0o0o

A few days later, H'cup was watching Tannluth flying over the lake.

_:YIKES!:_

Tannluth gave out an audible squeak of surprise as he plunged into the lake. He was practicing using his tailfins to tighten his turning radius while flying. Unfortunately, he turned too tight, swapped ends in midair, went into a stall, and dropped like a rock. It was fortunate for him that Elonth suggested practicing over the lake, so all that got damaged was his pride. H'cup was standing on the shore, slapping his knee and laughing hysterically.

Tannluth snorted as he paddled back to shore; _:I'm glad you find this amusing, it's not as easy as it looks!:_

"Well, if you took Elonth's advice, you probably wouldn't be in this situation! Isn't that right Elonth?"

H'cup turned to look at the large bronze dragon on the ledge behind him. Elonth didn't reply, but winked a blue whirling eye at him.

_:I wish I never told you that Elonth was giving me flying lessons! After all, I have been teaching dragons how to fly for far longer than he's been alive!:_

"Yes, Earth dragons! Have you ever taught a Pern dragon how to fly?"

_:You know I haven't:_

"Then maybe you can swallow that Prophet Singer pride of yours for just a little bit and take some suggestions from a dragon who HAS been teaching Pern dragons the basics of flight!"

Tannluth made his way out of the shallows, walked up next to H'cup, and proceeded to shake the water off his hide. H'cup shouted and jumped away from the spray his dragon was generating.

"HEY! Watch it, you stupid dragon!"

_:HA! You're finally calling me a 'dragon' instead of 'reptile'. Of course, I'm going to have to get even with you for calling me 'stupid':_

Tannluth grinned, showing all his teeth and advanced on him. H'cup gulped nervously and backed up away from his dragon.

"Um, Tannluth, what are you doing?"

_:Getting even:_

Tannluth pounced, pinning H'cup to the ground. Keeping one paw on his chest, he used his other paw to lift his shirt. H'cup had an idea of what he was doing and increased his struggles, all to no avail.

"No, Tannluth, not that, anything but that!"

Tannluth's eyes were whirling blue as he bent down and ran his tongue all along H'cup's belly. H'cup was struggling furiously now, laughing hysterically and begging for Tannluth to stop!

"Ha ha ha! Stop! Stop it! I give up! I'm sorry for calling you stupid! Ha ha ha! Oh, please stop!"

Tannluth continued licking as he said; _:Not good enough:_

"Ha ha ha! What do you want? Ha ha, oh, please stop!"

_:I don't really want anything, H'cup. I'm just going to torture you a little longer to teach you a lesson!:_

"Lesson, ha ha, what lesson?"

_:Don't insult dragons! If we were back on Earth, I would say that you wouldn't want to insult them because you are crunchy and taste good, but here on Pern you wouldn't want to insult us because we would knock you down and tickle you!:_

"Ha ha, can't you just, ha ha, claw me or, hee hee, swat me?"

_:Nope, it's more fun like this:_

Tannluth gave one final lick and removed his paw from H'cup's chest. H'cup sat up slowly, wiping the tears from his eyes and holding his side. Tannluth became alarmed when he saw this.

_:H'cup, are you all right? Did I hurt you?:_

H'cup waved him off and said; "I'm all right, Tannluth. It's just that my side hurts from laughing so hard. I'll be okay in a few minutes."

Tannluth huffed and said; _:Well, it's your own fault for insulting me like that!:_

"I'll remember that next time." Tannluth's stomach rumbled loud enough for H'cup to hear it. "Didn't you catch some breakfast this morning?"

_:No, Elonth was off duty for a while and I wanted to practice some flying, so he agreed to supervise me. I figured I'll catch a wherry later:_

"Well, it's later right now. Why don't you take care of your needs and I'll sit down under this tree over here."

_:Okay, see ya!:_

Tannluth took off at a run toward the wherry pens, spread his wings, and lifted off. He gained some altitude so he could drop down on an unsuspecting wherry. Picking his target, Tannluth folded his wings and dived towards one of the larger ones standing on the edge of the flock. Spreading his wings at the last second to cushion the impact, Tannluth drove his talons into his prey, killing it instantly and scattering the rest of the flock. Holding the carcass in his jaws, he flapped his wings and glided to an isolated spot on one of the ledges to enjoy his meal.

H'cup started walking towards the trees when Heimdall swooped down from one of the ledges and landed on his shoulder. He was chirping excitedly and bumping his head against H'cup's cheek in order to get attention. H'cup laughed and scratched his chin as Heimdall purred in pleasure.

"Hey there, little buddy, how have you been doing? Did you watch Tannluth fly today?"

Heimdall chirped and sent H'cup images of Tannluth flying over the lake. He started laughing out loud when Heimdall sent him the image of the black dragon falling into the lake. Heimdall was chirping and shaking with laughter himself.

"Yeah, that was pretty funny, wasn't it? Still, he's learning. Won't be long before I'm allowed to go flying WITH him instead of watching from the ground!"

H'cup was quiet as he walked the rest of the way up a hill to a large oak tree. He sat with his back to the trunk and looked out over the lake. He could see Tannluth on a ledge enjoying his breakfast. He started closing his eyes for a short nap when he heard the chittering of a fire lizard coming from the other side of the tree. Heimdall perked up on his shoulder as H'cup got up to see where the sound was coming from. As he rounded the trunk, H'cup got a glimpse of a pale green fire lizard a second before she squawked and disappeared _between_. He only had a moment to register that someone was holding the lizard before she jumped up and got in his face.

"What the bloody SHARDS do you think you're doing sneaking up on people like that! You scared Jade _between_! I was just starting to work on her getting over her shyness, now I don't even know when she'll be coming back!"

H'cup was barely listening to her tirade. He couldn't believe who was standing before him.

_"It can't be her, can it? Did that machine send someone else to this planet?"_

The tall blonde girl crossed her arms and was tapping her foot. She asked impatiently; "Well, do you have anything to say for yourself?"

Swallowing hard, H'cup managed to squeak out; "A-Astrid? Is that r-really you?"

The girl took a step back and said; "Astrid? I don't know any Astrid. What kind of a name is that anyway?"

H'cup shook his head and came back to his senses. "Sorry, Astrid was a friend of mine from a long time ago and you looked just like her." _Exactly__ like her _he thought. "I'm sorry about scaring your fire lizard. Maybe if we wait here she'll come back."

The girl seemed to regard him for a moment then shrugged her shoulders. "It's all right, Jade will find her way back to me. She always does."

"D-do you mind i-if I wait here with you for her to come back?" _Damn, do I have to start stammering again?_

The girl smiled at H'cup's nervousness and said; "No, I don't mind. By the way, my name's Vailira."

"H'cup."

"I'm sorry, I didn't get that. It sounded like you had a hiccup."

"Y-yeah, that's my name, at least it was before they contracted it."

"Hiccup. That's a strange name. Even stranger than Astrid. And you said they contracted it, so that means you're a dragonrider!"

"Yep, H'cup, that's me. And my dragon's name is Tannluth."

"I don't see your dragon with you, H'cup. Unless you count that little bronze flit on your shoulder as a dragon."

H'cup looked down at his shoulder to where Heimdall was leaning forward and chirping a greeting.

"You mean, this little guy? This is my other friend, Heimdall. Heimdall, say hello to Vailira."

Heimdall leaned forward from H'cup's shoulder and chirped a greeting. Vailira reached up and started scratching his headknob as the little bronze fire lizard purred in pleasure.

"Friendly little guy, isn't he?"

"Oh, he loves anyone who will give him some attention.

Vailira started laughing at the antics of the bronze fire lizard. H'cup decided that he really liked the sound of her laughter.

"So, when do I get to meet your dragon?"

"Um, you want to meet Tannluth? Right now?"

"Sure, might as well do something while we're waiting for Jade."

"Let me call him to see if he's done eating his breakfast." _"Hey, Tannluth, are you done eating? There's someone here I'd like you to meet."_

_:Yeah, I'm done. I'm at the lake washing up right now. I'll be with you in a minute:_

_"Okay, bud, I'm at the big oak tree. See you when you get here."_

"Tannluth is washing up and he'll be here shortly."

Vailira nodded and then asked him; "H'cup, can I ask where you're from? I've seen and talked to quite a few different people from all over Pern but I've never heard an accent quite like yours. Are you from somewhere around Keroon?"

"No, not Keroon, somewhere much further away than that."

"Don't tell me you're from Southern!"

"No, even further away than Southern."

"How can you get further away than Southern? That's the most isolated Weyr and Hold on Pern!"

"It's a long story."

"I'd like to hear it sometime."

"You will. Ah, here comes Tannluth now." Tannluth glided in for a landing a short ways from the big oak tree and trotted up to meet them.

_:Okay H'cup, where is this person that you're all impatient for me to meet...: _Tannluth's stopped in his tracks and his jaw dropped open when he caught sight of Vailira.

_:H'cup, is this who I think it is?:_

_"No buddy, it's not her. And close your mouth, you'll catch flies!"_

Tannluth closed his mouth gently and walked up close to H'cup.

"Tannluth, meet Vailira. Vailira, this is my dragon and best friend, Tannluth." Whispering to Vailira he said; "Put your hand straight out palm down and hold still!" She looked at him questioningly, but H'cup nodded and winked, so she did as she was told. Tannluth took a step forward and placed his snout in the open palm of her hand. As she stroked the smooth scales on Tannluth's snout, her face lit up with one of the loveliest smiles H'cup has ever seen.

She said; "It is very nice to meet you Tannluth."

Tannluth purred as he said; _:It is very nice to meet you too Vailira:_

She took a step backwards and her eyes got very large as she said; "Did you just speak to me Tannluth?"

_:Yes, that was me. Is this the first time a dragon has ever spoken to you?:_

"Yes, it is. Not even the brown dragon who Searched me would speak to me. He just prodded me with his snout and the next thing I know his rider telling me that I was Searched for the queen egg and I was coming to Telgar Weyr!"

_:Well, I think it's a bit silly that other dragons will refuse to speak to anyone but their own riders. You strike me as being a very kind and open person so I have no problem speaking to you:_

"Well, I want to thank you for speaking to me, Tannluth. I must say that while I haven't seen many dragons, you certainly are unusual. No offense, of course!"

_:None taken. I am quite different from the rest of the dragons of Pern:_

"H'cup tells me that he came from a place much further away from here than Southern. Did you come from the same place as he did?"

_:Yes, I did:_

"And I suppose your story of how you got here is long as well?"

_:Longer:_

"Then I suggest we get comfortable while both of you tell me your stories and then I'll tell you mine. Let's go have a seat in the shade, shall we?"

* * *

><p><em>AN: This one was a lot of fun to write. It shouldn't be as long of a wait for the next chapter to come up._

_**As always, use the blue button below and leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, H'cup, Heimdall, (and me) very happy!**_


	17. Chapter 17 Vailira's story

**Chapter 17 - Vailira's Story**

* * *

><p><em>AN: Hey everyone, it's another update!_

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

* * *

><p>Vailira listened intently as Tannluth and H'cup told their stories. When they were finished, she sat quietly for a few moments gathering her thoughts.<p>

_:Vailira, are you all right?:_

She blinked her eyes several times and nodded. "Yes, Tannluth, I'm all right. I'm just in a bit of shock, that's all. That had to be the most incredible story I've ever heard! Mine absolutely pales in comparison to both of yours. I'm not so sure if you want to hear it anymore."

Both H'cup and Tannluth said at the same time; "Of course we want to hear it!"

Vailira looked between the both of them and burst out laughing. "Do you realize what you've just done? You both said the same thing at the exact same time!"

Tannluth and H'cup looked at each other before turning to Vailira and simultaneously asking; "We did?"

Vailira was howling with laughter now, holding her sides and rolling on the ground. "Stop, you're killing me!"

H'cup laughed along with her and Tannluth snorted in amusement.

When she was finished, Vailira sat up against the trunk of the tree and wiped her eyes with the back of her sleeve. "Whew, that was fun! Give me a moment to collect my breath and my thoughts and I'll begin."

H'cup smiled and said; "Take all the time you need."

Turning to Tannluth he said; _"You know, buddy, now that I've seen her up close and talked to her for a while, I can see that there ARE several differences between her and Astrid."_

Tannluth nodded; _:I know what you mean, H'cup. Of course, we don't really know her, but she seems to be a bit more patient than Astrid ever was:_

_"I noticed that myself, but there's also a difference in her eyes. Astrid had a warrior's eyes, hard and cold most of the time, but also friendly during moments of peace. Vailira's eyes have strength to them, but there's also curiosity, kindness, and gentleness."_

_:Astrid was raised as a warrior H'cup, there was very little room for kindness or gentleness. After the war ended, I did start to see some of those other qualities begin to emerge:_

H'cup sighed and said; _"I guess we'll never know, will we?"_ He looked up and noticed Vailira was staring at him.

"What?"

"You've been talking to Tannluth, haven't you?"

"Um, h-how can you tell?"

"Your eyes become unfocused, like you're staring off into space."

"Um, yeah, we were talking."

"About me?"

"What?"

"Were you and Tannluth talking about me?"

"Um, yeah?"

Vailira laughed and said; "Don't worry H'cup, I'm not offended. In fact, I'm a bit curious as to what you were saying about me."

"You really want to know?"

"Yes, I do."

"Well, you remember when I first saw you I thought you were my friend Astrid?"

Vailira nodded.

"You do look a lot like her, but both Tannluth and myself noticed some differences between the two of you. That's what we were discussing."

Vailira nodded again and said; "Thank you for sharing that with me, H'cup. I'm sorry that you were separated forcefully from your friend Astrid. Hopefully, I can be your friend without having to be reminded of your loss."

H'cup smiled, nodded and said; "I'd like that."

"Good, then let me tell you my story."

Vailira took a breath and said; "I grew up on a small cothold on the border between Ruatha and Fort. I was the youngest in my family, my brothers Willett and Jaysen were older than me by three and five turns respectively. My father raised runners and herdbeasts and my mother was a weaver. When I was eight turns old, Mother tried teaching me the basics of her craft, but I was drawn to the animals that Father raised and cared for. Every morning I would get up early, just to go outside and be with them. Father would lecture me that I was too young and small and might get trampled by one of the animals, but I felt no fear when I was amongst them. In fact, they were very gentle, coming in close so I could stroke their muzzles. After seeing me interact with them, Father allowed me to work with the animals every day from then on."

"Things were fine for a few turns, Father would make money selling his runners and herdbeasts and Mother would make money sewing clothes. Unfortunately, our success did not go unnoticed. During the winter after my eleventh birthing day, a group of bandits attacked one night, breaking down the gates and trying to steal our animals. Father, Willett, and Jaysen ran outside to stop them, but were killed when the bandits shot them with crossbows. Mother screamed, grabbed a sword from the wall, and ran outside swinging wildly. She managed to cut two of them before she was shot in the chest. She wasn't killed but was wounded very badly, so she staggered back inside, pushed me toward the back wall of the house, pulled the rug back over the root cellar and told me to hide. I cried and said I didn't want her to leave me alone, but she hugged me and said something to me that I haven't forgotten to this day."

H'cup asked; "What was it that she said to you?"

She wiped away a tear as she said; "Be brave, Vailira."

Wiping away additional tears, she cleared her throat and continued. "I went down into the cellar after Mother told me to be quiet no matter what I heard. Mother closed the door and pulled the rug over it. I huddled in a corner in the dark, listening to the sounds of creaking floorboards above me. I could hear Mother screaming obscenities as she attacked the bandits in the house. I heard one of them scream as Mother cut him with her sword and then I heard the 'twang' of a crossbow being fired. There was silence for a few moments, but then I could hear Mother drop her sword and she fell to the floor a moment later. I heard the bandits cursing and throwing things as they ransacked the house. All this time I clamped down hard on a folded up piece of my shirt to keep from screaming. I remembered the last words Mother said to me and started repeating them; _Be brave, Vailira. Be brave, Vailira. Be brave, Vailira._"

"I stayed hidden in the cellar until I couldn't hear the bandits tearing through the house anymore. When it became silent I was even more afraid because I thought they had found the door to the cellar and were coming down to get me. I sat still and quiet, repeating the mantra; _Be brave, Vailira. _After what seemed like hours, I finally summoned the nerve to get up and see if the bandits had truly left and if any of my family were still alive. Opening the door a crack, I looked around and saw that no one was in the house. There were also no sounds coming from outside, so I opened the door the rest of the way and climbed out. Uncovering a glow basket that wasn't broken open, I walked into the next room and saw Mother lying face down on the floor in a spreading pool of blood. I put the basket down and turned her over, only to see the crossbow bolt sticking out the side of her neck. Her eyes were open wide and unseeing and I knew that Mother was dead. Closing her eyes, I knelt and cried over her body for a long time and then went to check on Father and my brothers."

"Covering the glow basket, I peeked outside to see if any bandits were close by. When I didn't see or hear anyone, I made my way carefully to the barn where I saw three bodies on the ground. I checked over Father, Willett, and Jaysen, but I could see that they were dead as well. That's when the realization hit me, I was all alone in the world. I sank to my knees and cried for the longest time, but stopped when I started shivering from the cold. I started to tell myself that I just didn't care, that I might as well stay out here and freeze to death so I could join the rest of my family, but I remembered the words; _Be brave, Vailira. _I wiped my eyes, got up, and went inside to find my winter clothes. Fortunately, the bandits didn't steal them because they were in my room under a pile of overturned clothes. When I finished getting dressed, I went back outside and got to work."

"It took me the rest of the night, but I managed to drag the bodies of my family to a spot where I wanted to bury them. That morning, I started digging the holes but stopped when I heard men on runners coming from the forest. I started to panic, thinking that the bandits were coming back so I ran and hid in some bushes. When the group of twenty men got close, I could see that they were caravan guards and the man leading them was my Uncle Tamaran! I had forgotten that this was the time of the year when the caravan needed new animals, and Uncle Taraman was here with his men to purchase some from his brother. I ran up to him, leaped into his arms, and cried for the longest time in a combination of grief and relief. Grief for the loss of my family, relief with the knowledge that I was no longer alone in the world! After examining the bodies, Uncle Tamaran ordered his men to finish digging the holes and burying the bodies. He led me inside the house where I told him what happened. After giving me something to eat, I laid down and fell asleep, completely exhausted."

"I slept through the rest of that day and all through the night. I woke the next morning only to find that Uncle Tamaran left with most of his men to track down the bandits. He left a few men behind to explain this to me and to keep watch. He returned the day after, his men herding most of the animals that were stolen from us and an oxcart full of our stolen goods. He explained that he tracked down the bandits and ambushed them in a box canyon. It was a short but brutal fight, with most of the bandits being killed in the initial salvo. The few survivors were tied to the backs of some runners and sent to Ruatha for trial, where they would most likely be hanged or exiled. So, in one fell swoop, my uncle served justice to those who stole our goods and murdered my family. So why did I feel so empty inside? I asked Uncle Tamaran what was to become of me. He said that I was too young to manage the cothold myself, so I was going to be fostered until I was old enough to hold on my own. I said that I wanted to go with him since he was the only family I had left. He said that being a caravan guard was no job for an eleven-turn old girl. I told him that I didn't want to be a guard, but that I could work with the animals of the caravan. He said he would think about it on the way to Ruatha."

"We left the next morning, leaving a few men behind to care for the animals. Uncle Tamaran told them that he would send someone from Ruatha to act as steward for the cothold and to catch up to the caravan when they arrived. It took us a day and a half to reach Ruatha. Each night I would help brush down and feed the runners. Each morning I would get up shortly after dawn to gather grasses to feed them. Uncle Tamaran was impressed with the way I had with the runners and said I could stay with the caravan on a trial basis. I squealed with delight and hugged him, telling him he wouldn't be sorry for his decision. When we arrived in Ruatha, Uncle Tamaran introduced me to the caravan beastcrafter, a skinny old man named Kalenek. When I first saw him I was a little scared, but the old man smiled a big, nearly toothless smile and told me that he would take good care of me. I was still a little nervous around him, but after talking with him a while I found out that he was a treasure trove of knowledge! He was ugly and smelled funny, but I found out that I really liked the old man."

"That was my life for the next four turns. The caravan traveled between Fort, Ruatha, Nabol, up to Crom, across to High Reaches, and back down to Fort again. In my travels, I had the opportunity to meet and learn about the people of Pern. I also learned a great deal more about the care of animals from old Kalenek, not only about domesticated breeds, but also about the wild animals. I asked if he knew about dragons and fire lizards but he didn't know much at all. He grew up during the long Interval when there was only Benden Weyr, so he very rarely saw a dragon. He also said that fire lizards were very shy and unless you could Impress one just after it hatches, there's absolutely no chance you'll ever catch one because they will just disappear _between_."

"I started dreaming how nice it would be to have a fire lizard of my own, so I started hunting around river banks when we camped for the night because I heard that fire lizards would sometimes lay their clutches in the sand. One morning a few months ago, I was walking along the river bank near Nabol when I heard the chirping of a fire lizard. I ran to where the sound was coming from, only to see a pale green lizard struggling in the jaws of a tunnel snake! She had just hatched and was struggling hard, but was losing strength. I pulled my knife and cut the snake's head off so it couldn't wrap its coils around her. I then used my knife to pry the snake's jaws from the tiny body. She was very weak, but still alive. I tore strips of cloth from my tunic to dress her wounds and fed her bits of cut-up meatroll I always carried with me whenever I went hunting for fire lizard nests. She was the most beautiful pale green I've ever seen, so I called her Jade.

"It took a while, but eventually Jade made a full recovery. She would act quite normally around me and only tolerated Kalenek, but would disappear in an instant whenever anyone else came close. I guess it's my fault that she's so shy, but I didn't want to stress her while she was healing from her wounds. Despite her shyness, Jade is an entirely different lizard when it comes to tunnel snakes, she hates them with a white-hot passion! I suppose it comes from almost being devoured by one right after she was born. I have to forcibly remove their bodies from her jaws once she kills one, otherwise she will continue to attack it! So, that became one of our other duties, hunting tunnel snakes around the camp and killing them."

"We were on our way to Crom when the dragonriders landed in a field a short way from us. Uncle Tamaran rode out to meet them and to find out what they wanted. He returned and said that they were on Search and that there was a queen egg on the sands at Telgar. They wanted to inspect the girls of the caravan to see if anyone was eligible. He looked right at me and asked if I would like to stand for the egg. I was shocked! To have the chance to Impress a dragon? Of course I would! I rode out on the back of Uncle Tamaran's horse until we were close to the dragons. I got off and stood next to several other girls and waited for the dragons to approach. As they walked up to us, a few girls screamed and ran away, but I stood my ground. A blue dragon looked over the group, selecting one girl but passing me over. A green dragon selected two more girls and stared at me for a few seconds before moving on. The brown dragon of the group passed over all the girls until he got to me. His eyes started whirling very fast as he prodded me gently with his snout and he turned to his rider. I asked him what that meant and he said that his dragon thinks I would be a good candidate for the queen egg."

"I went back to the wagon where I kept my things and packed them up, hugged and said goodbye to Kalenek and Uncle Tamaran, and climbed onto the back of the brown dragon that selected me. We took off, went _between,_ and arrived here. Once we were settled in the candidate barracks, the headwoman started assigning chores that we were expected to perform when we were not in classes. I asked if I could work with the Weyr's beastcrafter and she said yes. I was there this morning feeding the animals and he said I could have the rest of the morning off until the noon meal. I was here under this tree playing with Jade when you walked up."

H'cup sat staring for a few moments after Vailira was finished. He said to her; "Now what made you think that your story was boring? It sounds like you've had a very interesting life so far, Vailira."

_:I agree. It's a shame what happened to your family and I'm sorry for your loss, but it sounds like you've made quite a few friends and learned a lot of new things in your life:_

"You really think so?"

Both H'cup and Tannluth nodded and said simultaneously; "We do."

Vailira's eyes went wide before she broke up with laughter a moment later. "You're doing it again!"

H'cup and Tannluth looked at each other, grinned, and asked at the same time; "What are we doing again?"

The sound of Vailira's howling laughter echoed several times around the bowl of the Weyr!

o0o0o0o

The next morning, H'cup was waiting for Vailira at the base of the oak tree. Since they both had duties in different parts of the Weyr, they both agreed that this would be their meeting place from now on. H'cup was leaning against the trunk when he saw Vailira stalking up to the tree. She didn't look happy at all.

"Vailira, what's wrong?"

Vailira was stomping back and forth, her fists turning white from being squeezed so hard.

"Fardling, sharding, stupid, fork-tailed, empty-headed, piece of steaming watchwher droppings!"

H'cup put up his hands and said; "Whoa, whoa, what did I do to piss you off?"

Vailira looked up as she became aware of his presence.

"Oh, hello H'cup. Don't worry, it's not you I'm pissed at!"

"Let me guess, Chandara, right?"

Vailira's eyes went wide. "How did you know?"

"S'nar tried talking to her the day she got here and he reacted the same way you're acting right now. I guess her charming personality just brings out the best qualities in people."

"HAH! You can say that again! The desire to wring her stupid wherry neck is the quality she brings out in me!"

H'cup smirked and asked; "What did she do to set you off?"

"She called me a _drudge_! And she expects me to change her bed linens every day!"

"Hmmm, I could see how that might upset you, but maybe you should take her up on her offer."

"WHAT? You can't be serious?"

H'cup nodded; "I am, but instead of just changing her bed linens, you can add something else as well. Here's what we're going to do..."

The next morning, H'cup was pacing at the base of the tree, waiting for Vailira and wondering how their prank went. H'cup could see her running from the dining cavern with a big smile on her face.

"Well? Tell me what happened!"

Vailira grabbed him by the arms and swung him around. H'cup laughed at her exuberance.

"Oh, H'cup, it was _perfect_! Your joke worked beautifully! I made the bed as you said, but added the skin of water with the stopper halfway pulled out under the mattress cover. Chandara pulled the covers back and when she laid down, _SPLAT_! Oh, how she screamed! It took a few moments before she figured out that I must have done it. She started to come my way to slap me but stopped when Heimdall flew in front of her, hissing and baring his claws. Did you send him to watch over me?"

"Well, yeah, I did. Candidates aren't supposed to fight. I figured you could take Chandara easily with one hand tied behind your back and blindfolded, but I didn't want you to get in trouble for fighting."

"Aww, that was sweet of you." Vailira leaned forward and kissed H'cup on the cheek. H'cup touched his cheek and turned a bright shade of crimson as Vailira giggled.

"Um, er, did you get in any trouble?"

"Oh, just a little, but it wasn't anything I couldn't handle. Falina is in charge of our barracks and she made me go to the storage cavern to get a clean mattress and a fresh set of sheets. Chandara screamed that I wasn't punished enough and ought to be expelled from the Weyr. Falina calmly explained to her that if she was going to react this badly to a harmless prank, then she had no business to try for Impression. Chandara backed down quickly from that, but she stared daggers at me while I was making her bed. I have a feeling she will try something later, but she didn't do anything last night with Heimdall sleeping next to my bunk."

"I'll have him stay with you at night to keep things under control. He likes you."

"Like you said, he likes anyone who will give him food and attention. I just wish Jade wasn't so shy. I'm sure she would come to my aid, but I would have to be fighting for my life in order for her to overcome her shyness. I don't mind having Heimdall sleeping next to me, H'cup. In fact, it would be nice to have a friend in the barracks."

"You don't get along with the other girls?"

"Not really, I haven't had the time to get to know them. There's only six of us so far and Chandara's the nastiest of them all! Two of the younger girls hang around her because they're impressed with her rank. The other two are either very shy or just mind their own business. Either way, I haven't talked to them at all."

"Do you think it might be a good idea to get to know them?"

Vailira shrugged and said; "What's the point? Only one of us is going to get the queen, the others will go their separate ways. Besides, it's only four more sevendays until the eggs hatch. I can stay out of trouble until then."

o0o0o0o

Four more sevendays came and went. H'cup continued with his weyrling training and Tannluth continued to practice flying over the lake and Weyr. H'cup was watching him one day and saw Tannluth flip forward in midair, flap his wings twice, and continued in the opposite direction at the same speed with very little loss of altitude.

_"WHOA! Tannluth, what was that maneuver you just performed?"_

_:I call it the 'Ricochet Wingover'. You like it?:_

_"Like it? I LOVE IT! That was AWESOME! Do it again!"_

_:Sure thing, just let me circle back around so you can see it better:_

Tannluth circled back around so that H'cup wasn't staring into the sun and performed the same maneuver. H'cup started clapping and noticed that Vailira was clapping next to him.

"Hi there, Vailira, did you see the maneuver that Tannluth just performed?"

"Of course I saw it, silly. Why do you think I was clapping?"

"Yeah, right, dumb question. Anyway, what do you think?"

"He's got some pretty amazing maneuverability with that tailfin of his. I didn't think dragons were capable of moves like that!"

"Normal dragons, no, but Tannluth's different. I don't think we've realized his full potential yet."

"It will be interesting to see what his capabilities will be. Look, H'cup, I wanted to come out here and thank you for your friendship and support these past few sevendays. I don't know if I would have made it without you. You're my best friend in this Weyr." She stepped forward and kissed him on the cheek. H'cup blushed and Vailira laughed.

"You're very welcome, Vailira. You've also become a very good friend and I hope we can stay friends no matter what happens tomorrow."

"I'd like that. I've got to get back to my chores. See you in the stands tomorrow?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world! Good luck!"

"Thanks! See you later!"

As H'cup watched her go, Tannluth landed a short distance from him and trotted up next to him.

_:Was that Vailira I saw standing next to you?:_

"Yeah buddy, that was her."

_:What did she want?:_

"She wanted to thank me for being a friend to her these past few sevendays. I wished her luck for tomorrow."

_:Luck has nothing to do with it:_

H'cup turned and looked at him; "What do you mean by that?"

_:She will Impress:_

"Really? Is there something you know, Tannluth?"

Tannluth tilted his head to the side in an imitation of a shrug.

_:It's not what I know, it's more of a feeling. I've seen the other female candidates and I'm not impressed. Vailira's the only one I have a good, positive feeling about:_

H'cup stroked the scales on his neck and said; "I hope you're right, buddy. I hope you're right."

o0o0o0o

That evening, H'cup was listening to the conversation at the weyrling table. The subject was which female candidate would Impress the queen. H'cup was quiet as the argument went back and forth.

"I think it will be Mariosa."

"Nah, not a chance. I think Zhenia will Impress the queen."

"Zhenia? You've got to be kidding! There are more brains _between_ than she's got in her head!"

"How about Aleena?"

"Too timid. I still think Chandara will Impress."

H'cup let his opinion be known by exclaiming; "HAH!"

Everyone at the table looked at him. S'nar asked; "You have a different opinion, H'cup?"

"There's no chance that Chandara will Impress, she's still too full of herself! How about Vailira?"

The rest of the table burst out laughing. Ch'ser asked; "The _drudge_? You think the _drudge_ is going to Impress? Have you been in the fellis stores, H'cup? It's making you hallucinate!"

H'cup ground his teeth and said; "Vailira's no fardling drudge!"

"She may not be a drudge, but she's definitely no lady!"

H'cup sighed and said; "No, she's not a lady, but she's a good friend and a hard worker. I have a feeling that she would make a fine Weyrwoman!"

S'nar asked; "Would you care to place a little wager on your choice?"

H'cup said; "Sure, I'm game. Let's all contribute to a pot and the ones who choose the right candidate divide the winnings amongst themselves. Make it five marks per person to play and you only get one choice!"

S'nar, T'yner, Ch'ser, and the rest of the weyrlings nodded. H'cup wrote down who contributed and their choice of candidate. He looked at the list and noticed that he was the only one who chose Vailira.

_"I sure hope you're right, buddy."_

_:Don't worry, I am:_

o0o0o0o

The next morning started bright and early with the dragons humming just after dawn. The Weyr basically _erupted_ with activity, with people and dragons going in all different directions at the same time. H'cup and the rest of the weyrlings pitched in to help with the feast preparations. When all was ready, he made his way to the Hatching Cavern and took his place in the stands with the rest of his weyrling class. H'cup looked up to the lowest ledge in the cavern. Tannluth was there, along with all the rest of the weyrling dragons. Even though he could fly to an upper ledge, he was instructed to position himself on the lowest ledge that could be reached by the still grounded weyrling dragons. Tannluth grumbled but complied.

All the eggs on the sands were rocking in earnest as the dragon's humming increased in pitch and volume. The white robed candidates filed onto the sands and Realth hissed at them, spreading her wings and baring her fangs. Several of the candidates backed away in fear, but H'cup noted with pride that Vailira stood her ground. To the amazement of those in the stands, she walked several paces _toward_ the angrily hissing queen and bowed low at the waist. Realth stopped hissing at the girl and bowed her head in return. Vailira stepped forward and took her place next to the queen egg. The other candidates followed her lead, bowing in respect to Realth and filing onto the sands.

As soon as all the candidates were in place, a large egg in the middle of the clutch cracked open with a loud _snick_. A brown head emerged and the young dragon fought the rest of the way out of his shell. He tumbled forward with a squeak, but righted himself quickly and looked around at the gathered candidates. When he made his choice, he gave a squeal of joy and ran straight into the arms of a tall dark-haired boy.

"He says his name is Burith!"

A section of the stands erupted in applause as the new dragonrider pair was led off the sands. Eggs started cracking all over the sands and hatchling dragons were emerging, crying in extreme hunger and desperate to find their lifemates.

It was in the middle of all this chaos that the newest queen of Telgar Weyr made her entrance. The large golden egg cracked right down the middle, but to those watching it seemed the queen was taking a breather before finishing. With a mighty shove, she pushed the back half of the egg away from her, but fell forward and was stuck in the front half. Several candidates wanted to rush forward to help her, but stopped when they saw her wildly flashing talons. Anyone getting close to those could easily be slashed open, so they kept their distance and allowed the queen to work it out herself. Apparently, she did, because she paused in her struggles, inserted both forepaws, and broke free of the remaining part of the egg.

As she lifted her head to take in her surroundings, everyone in the audience _oohed _and _aahed_ at the sight of the pale gold queen. She got to her feet and started toward the circle of candidates when her forepaws got tangled in her wing and she went down in a heap. Chandara was the closest to her, so she stepped forward and helped the little queen untangle herself. She then took the queen's head in her hands and looked into her eyes.

o0o0o0o

Vailira's POV

_"Well, that's it then, it's all over but for the Hatching Feast" _

I started to turn away when I could hear gasps from the audience. Chandara was still kneeling where she helped the queen, but the queen turned away from her and was inspecting the other candidates!

_"WHAAAT? I thought she Impressed! Guess not!"_

I tried to stay still and wait for the queen to finish her inspection of the other candidates. I couldn't help but feel nervous and my stomach threatened to do flips on me. I raised my head, closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and repeated the mantra Mother taught me all those turns ago.

_"Be brave, Vailira."_

_:You ARE brave Vailira, my Vailira. You have always been brave. You are the bravest soul I know:_

My eyes snapped open and I looked toward the stands only to see everyone on their feet and cheering wildly. I then felt something bump against my leg. I looked down and felt myself falling into the rainbow eyes of the queen, who was now MY queen!

_:Yes, I am yours and you are mine! We will always be together, forever!:_

"Yes, Chrysolth, we'll always be together." I blinked and asked; "How did I know your name?"

_:Because we are one. I know your name and you know mine. Simple, really. Now, can we get something to eat? I am REALLY hungry!:_

I started leading Chrysolth to get something to eat but stopped when I heard a scream of pure rage.

"NOOO! She's mine! MINE, I TELL YOU! No way can a DRUDGE Impress a queen! I WILL have her!"

I turned to see Chandara running at me with her arms outstretched. Whether she wanted to shove me out of the way or scratch me with her nails, it didn't matter. Chrysolth and I were Impressed and nothing could change that, but this idiot never listened to reason. Remembering what my Uncle Tamaran taught me, I remained calm and waited for her to reach me. At the last second, I stepped to the left, leaving my right foot directly in her path. She tripped over my outstretched foot and fell face first into the sand. I put a knee into her back to keep her there.

"AAARRGGH! LET ME UP! ASSAULT! YOU ASSAULTED ME! YOU'LL PAY FOR THAT!"

"I'm already paying for it, you screeching wherry! I'll be deaf two years sooner thanks to your high-pitched caterwauling!"

I kept my knee in Chandara's back until some brown riders came and took her away. I then turned to Chrysolth.

"Are you all right, love?"

_:I'm fine, just very hungry. Where did you learn how to move like that?:_

"My uncle taught me. I'll tell you all about it while I get you fed."

_:Sounds good to me:_

o0o0o0o

H'cup's POV

_"I can't believe it, that idiot just tried assaulting a Queenrider! She'd already Impressed! What did she hope to accomplish?"_

_:I don't know H'cup, there's no telling what goes on the minds of crazy people. Anyway, did you SEE her? She was MAGNIFICENT!:_

_"Yeah, she had some pretty amazing moves. I suppose her uncle taught her that."_

_:Who are you talking about? I'm not talking about Vailira, I'm talking about Chrysolth!:_

_"Chrysolth? The queen? You're attracted to the queen? Tannluth, she just hatched and you're already thinking of her as your mate?"_

_:Yes, she just hatched, but she'll grow, and in two turns time when she rises to mate for the first time, I'll be ready for her!:_

* * *

><p><em>AN: 1) I know it's a bit unbelievable that an eleven-turn old girl could drag the bodies of her family across the yard, especially a full grown man, but Vailira was raised on a farm and was used to hard work, so she would be stronger than most girls her age._

_2) The tunnel snake that attacked Jade was a constrictor type, so it had no venom glands._

_3) The exact time of hatching is unknown, but the day can be predicted from the time they were laid. Also, I've read in several stories that queens can feel when their young are close to hatching._

_**As always, use the blue button below and leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, H'cup, Heimdall, (and me) very happy!**_


	18. Chapter 18 Queenrider Vailira

**Chapter 18 - Queenrider Vailira**

* * *

><p><em>AN: Hello everyone, it's another update!_

_To all those who have read and reviewed, **Slytherinsal, Toothless-the-Nightfury, Tagesh, Apprentice Harper Kendra, Pern Dreamer, Beastial Moon, Ms Llewellyn**, and **WishIHadAnAccount** (sign up for an account and your screen name could be **IHaveAnAccountNow**, lol) THANKS! I LOVE you, guys and gals! Reviews absolutely make my day, and positive reviews make it even better!_

_With that being said, on to the story!_

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

* * *

><p>A sevenday has passed since the hatching and things were starting to settle into a routine for Telgar's newest weyrlings. H'cup and Tannluth still had their normal training regimen, but Tannluth would take time out of his day to practice flying. He landed after practicing some loops and turns over the lake and walked to where H'cup was sitting next to the oak tree. Laying down beside him, Tannluth laid his head in his lap and started purring as H'cup stroked his eye ridges.<p>

Turning a blue whirling eye on him, he asked; _:When do you think the weyrlingmaster will let us go flying together, H'cup?:_

"I don't know, Tannluth. They're probably waiting until you're bigger so you can carry me easier."

Tannluth snorted; _:Waste of time, if you ask me. I'm very nearly the same size I was back on Earth. If I could carry you then, I can carry you now:_

"Good point. I'll have to ask Weyrlingmaster M'dar's permission to sew some riding straps so we can start ground training."

Tannluth groaned as he remembered the time spent in the cove when H'cup first made his saddle back on Earth.

_:GROUND training? We've got to go through that AGAIN?:_

H'cup nodded; "Yep. It's been almost a full turn for both of us since we were flying. I'm sure we can get into the rhythm of turning together pretty quickly, but we've got to practice beforehand."

Tannluth sighed; _:I suppose you're right. Oh well, if it can't be avoided it must be endured:_

"That's the spirit!"

H'cup and Tannluth spent the next few minutes in silence, watching the activities in the weyr bowl and enjoying each other's company. When a group of weyrlings exited the barracks, Tannluth lifted his head and started a low hum.

_:There she is! H'cup, there she is!:_

H'cup turned to see what Tannluth was getting excited about and saw Chrysolth with Vailira by her side leading the new weyrling dragons to the lake. H'cup's heart started beating faster when he caught sight of Vailira. Gods, she was so beautiful!

_:You need to tell her that:_

H'cup blinked; "Huh?"

_:Tell her your feelings for her, H'cup. I've already expressed my feelings to Chrysolth, you should express yours to her rider:_

"What? You've already told Chrysolth you want her as your mate?"

_:Sure did. All the bronzes who want to fly her have expressed their desires already. Granted, she won't remember in two turns time but it's a dragon's way of letting their intentions be known. You should do the same with Vailira:_

"So, I should go up to Vailira and tell her I want her as my weyrmate?"

Tannluth whipped his tail around and gently slapped H'cup on the back of the head.

"OW! What was that for?"

_:For being a dimglow! Vailira's not a dragon, so don't treat her like one!:_

"So what should I do?"

_:You already KNOW what to do, H'cup. Just talk to her and let her know how you feel about her:_

"Thanks buddy, I will."

H'cup waited until Vailira was done with washing and oiling Chrysolth before he waved to her. Vailira smiled and waved back, but she turned away and walked to the weyrling barracks along with all the rest of the weyrlings and their young dragons. H'cup watched her leave and groaned.

"Now what do I do?"

_:Send her a message:_

"Good idea. Hey, Heimdall, come down here for a minute, little buddy. I've got a job for you."

Heimdall flew down from the branch where he was sunning himself, chirped a greeting to Tannluth and rubbed his head on H'cup's cheek. H'cup pulled out his pencil and a piece of paper from his tunic and wrote; _"Meet me at the oak tree after dinner." _He then tied it to Heimdall's leg and looked into his eyes.

"Heimdall, find Vailira and give her this note. Can you do that for me, little buddy?" Heimdall chirped once before taking off for the weyrling barracks.

"Well, that's it then. I guess we'll have to wait until after dinner."

_:Don't worry H'cup, she'll be here:_

o0o0o0o

Once dinner was finished, H'cup cleared his plates and went outside to the oak tree. He made it to the tree when he turned toward the dining cavern to see Vailira walking toward him with a smile on her face. H'cup felt his heart in his throat and his knees get weak. _"Shards! Am I going to feel like this every time I see her? I sure hope so!"_

"Um, h-hi Vailira."

Vailira's smile got bigger as she walked up to him and kissed him on the cheek. "Hello, H'cup. It's good to see you again. Sorry I haven't been by to talk, it's been an insane sevenday!"

H'cup blushed and said; "Um, yeah, I remember how crazy it was when Tannluth hatched. Feed, bathe, oil, classes, physical training, feed, bathe, oil, more classes, more feeding, bathing, oiling, and then do the same thing the next day!"

Vailira laughed and said; "That about sums it up, but it's totally worth it!"

H'cup laughed along with her. "It sure is. How is Chrysolth doing?"

Vailira stopped laughing. She looked straight at H'cup and her eyes narrowed. "Why is everyone asking me that, especially the bronze riders?"

H'cup put his hands up and apologized; "Whoa, hey wait a minute, Vailira, I'm your friend here! I'm sorry if I said something to offend you. I'm just trying to make conversation."

Vailira looked seriously at H'cup before sighing and lowering her head.

"No, I'm the one who's sorry, H'cup. I should have realized you're my friend and don't have a hidden agenda."

"Hidden agenda? What are you talking about?"

She sighed again and sat down next to the trunk and H'cup sat next to her.

"When I first came to the weyr, everyone but you thought I was a drudge and avoided me. You are the only one who took the time to get to know me before the hatching. Now that I've Impressed Chrysolth, all of a sudden EVERYONE wants to be my friend, especially the bronze riders! I think all they're really interested in is my queen! I'm just the extra baggage attached to her!"

H'cup got indignant and said; "You're NOT extra baggage!" He could see Vailira's eyes become unfocused for a few seconds. H'cup chuckled and said; "I bet Chrysolth just told you the same thing!"

Vailira looked at him and said; "How did you know?" H'cup didn't answer, just raised an eyebrow at her. "Yeah, right, stupid question. Anyway, I'm beginning to resent this sudden attention, all because I Impressed a queen dragon!"

"Well, it IS a pretty big deal!"

Vailira started shaking in anger when she said; "Yes, I know that, but all their questions are about Chrysolth. Very few of them are trying to get to know ME! You're the only one who has tried to get to know Vailira the girl, not Vailira, Queenrider of Chrysolth!"

Vailira lowered her head and started sobbing. H'cup scooted closer and put an arm around her shoulders. Vailira put her head on H'cup's shoulder and cried silently. H'cup stayed quiet and held her shoulder until she finished. When she was done, she sat up straight and sniffled.

"Sorry about that."

"Hey, no problem, what are friends for?"

Vailira smiled through her tears and chuckled; "Heh, that's what I mean. I couldn't do this with any of my new "friends". All of them expect me to act the proper queenrider!"

"Are they really bothering you that much?"

Vailira thought about it for a moment before shaking her head; "No, I guess it's not really that much of a problem. With the exception of one bronze rider. He comes around EVERY day and tries to chat me up. I keep telling him I'm not interested, but he persists!"

"Do you remember his name?"

Vailira nodded; "Yes, it's J'kun."

When H'cup started chuckling, Vailira asked; "What's so funny?"

"You did say J'kun? Rider of bronze Histeth?"

"Yes, I did. Again, what's so funny about that?"

"There's a running joke in the weyr. Even though Histeth is a bronze dragon, he's barely bigger than a brown and has never caught a queen in a mating flight. He's known as 'The Little Bronze Who Couldn't'."

Vailira smirked, chuckled, and started laughing. In between fits of laughter, she asked H'cup; "So you think J'kun is trying to get me to influence Chrysolth to let his Histeth catch her during her mating flight?" When H'cup nodded in the affirmative, Vailira started howling with laughter and didn't stop for a long time. Like her tears, H'cup figured this was good for her so he let her get it out of her system. When she was done, she wiped her eyes and smiled at him.

"Thanks."

"Anytime."

Vailira leaned her head on H'cup's shoulder and sat quietly for a few minutes. She broke the silence by sighing and saying; "I wish."

H'cup looked at her; "What do you wish for, Vailira?"

She sighed again and said; "I'm just being silly because I know it's impossible."

"Vailira, tell me what you wish for. I promise I won't think it's silly."

"You really won't think it's silly?"

"Well, I may THINK it, but I won't say it out loud!"

Vailira smiled and punched him in the arm.

"What I wish for is that Tannluth was a bronze dragon. That way we could avoid all this craziness!"

H'cup leaned back and looked at her. "You really mean that? You would want Tannluth to fly Chrysolth?"

"Yeah, I know, silly, huh? After all, only bronze dragons fly queens."

H'cup was stunned! Vailira wanted Tannluth to fly Chrysolth? Maybe this wouldn't be so hard after all!

"Vailira, your wish is not silly at all. In fact, I believe I have something you may want to know."

"What is it, H'cup?"

"Do you remember when Chrysolth hatched and all the bronze dragons were humming?"

"Yes, I do remember. Falina told me that's the way bronze dragons welcome their potential mate into the world."

"Well, Tannluth was humming as well. He wants to fly Chrysolth when she rises to mate for the first time."

Vailira looked at him, too stunned to speak. She shook her head and said; "How is that possible? Tannluth is technically a brown dragon. Everyone knows that only bronzes fly queens!"

"And do you know why? It's because only the bronzes have the strength and endurance to keep up with a queen during her mating flight. You've only seen a little bit of Tannluth's flying ability. Not only is he the first dragon of Pern to start flying at two months of age, he has 450 turns of flying experience to call on."

"Yes, he has the maneuverability and experience, but does he have the endurance?"

"I believe he does. Back on Earth we would sometimes go on flights lasting twelve hours or more without him being tired. I'm sure he could have gone even longer, but I was the one getting worn out from a long flight. It seems he has the same strength and endurance in this new body of his."

Vailira smiled as H'cup was speaking. When he was done, she squealed with joy and hugged him. H'cup hesitated a moment before hugging her back.

"Oh, H'cup, you don't realize how happy this makes me! One of the reasons I was angry with J'kun is that he said I would have to end my friendship with you. Of course, I told him to shove off _between_, but I was also worried that I would have to share a weyr with another rider once Chrysolth mated. Now, I don't have to worry about it. H'cup, I'd rather share a weyr with you than with anyone else!"

H'cup pulled away so he could look in her eyes and told her; "Vailira, we're both still in the weyrling barracks and you've already decided on me being your _weyrmate_? We've got two whole turns before we have to worry about this!"

She nodded and said; "I know that H'cup, but I've made my decision. Tannluth is the only dragon worthy of Chrysolth. And you are the only dragonrider worthy of me!"

Vailira leaned forward and kissed H'cup gently on the lips. H'cup's eyes were wide open in surprise, but he relaxed, closed his eyes, and returned the kiss with equal passion. When they broke the kiss and touched foreheads, H'cup started laughing.

Vailira asked; "What's so funny?"

"Tannluth. He told me I should talk to you and tell you my feelings for you, and here you go beating me to the punch!"

Vailira giggled and said; "Well, I'd still like to hear it!"

"You do?"

Vailira nodded.

"Okay, here goes. Vailira, the moment I first laid eyes on you I was elated thinking that my friend from Earth followed me here to Pern. After getting to know you I realized that you were a completely different person, but found out I liked you all the same. As we got to know each other better, I found that my feelings for you were changing. Vailira, I no longer see you as just a friend. I would be honored to be your weyrmate, to share your life and love along with our dragons for as long as we both shall live."

Vailira blinked before saying; "Wow! When you make oaths, you don't kid around, do you?"

"Nope."

Vailira leaned forward, kissed him, and said; "I accept."

H'cup hugged her in happiness, but broke apart when he saw some other riders emerging from the dining cavern.

Vailira looked at him; "What is it, H'cup?"

H'cup looked around nervously; "The other riders of the weyr. Vailira, they can't know about this, it's too soon!"

"What do you mean, it's too soon? H'cup, we've just declared our love for each other! We should announce it to the rest of the weyr!"

"I don't think that would be a good idea."

"Why not?"

"Think about it. Obviously, J'kun is a hidebound idiot who let his feelings about me be known, but how many other riders have the same resentment of our friendship and HAVEN'T said anything about it?"

Vailira's eyes got wide as she contemplated H'cup's words.

H'cup nodded; "Uh huh, now you get it. Blue rider K'nal tried to kill me simply for the fact that Tannluth exists. What do you think these people might do when they find out that we're pledged to each other?"

"But H'cup, what do we do?"

"Simple, we keep quiet about it. We can still meet discreetly, but any displays of passion will have to be kept under wraps. I don't like it any more than you do, but we have to be careful!"

Vailira pouted and said; "I hate this, but you're right. We'll just have to wait until Chrysolth rises, then things will get settled!"

H'cup hugged her, glad that she understood.

o0o0o0o

Three sevendays passed without incident. H'cup sewed together his first riding harness so that he and Tannluth could begin ground training. Vailira was moved from the weyrling barracks to an empty junior queen's weyr. They were still attending weyrling classes, but Chrysolth's growth has already outpaced those of her clutchmates and she needed larger accommodations.

H'cup was in the weyr bowl strapping the harness to Tannluth when he heard the scream.

"Whoa! Tannluth, what the fardling hell was that?"

Tannluth didn't seem too concerned. He looked at the senior queen's weyr and calmly said; _:Solth rises to mate:_

H'cup blinked; "Solth? The Weyrwoman's queen?"

Tannluth was still looking at the queen's weyr and nodded his head.

"What do we do?"

_:There's nothing we CAN do, H'cup. Just stay out of the way and watch. The bronzes have already blooded their kills and now it is Solth's turn:_

H'cup looked up at the queen's ledge just as she emerged. He has been in close proximity to Solth on several occasions. There was no way in the world that H'cup was ever getting near her while in her current state. Her eyes were glowing gold and she was snapping and growling at anything and everyone. Fortunately, all humans and dragons heard her scream and cleared out of her way. Snarling at the bronzes gathered on the ledges above her, she launched off her ledge to pounce on one of the herdbeasts. Sinking her claws in its side, she tore its belly open and was preparing to eat the entrails when she lifted her head and screamed. H'cup held his ears and turned to Tannluth.

"Why did she do that?"

_:She's screaming her defiance to her rider. Solth wants to eat the meat but her rider is controlling her. Queens are only supposed to blood their kills before a mating flight. The blood gives them the energy for a long flight, but if they eat the meat it slows them down and the bronzes can catch her easier. Short flight, small clutch. Long flight, HUGE clutch:_

H'cup nodded understanding and continued to watch the queen. Apparently, her rider won the contest of wills because Solth bent down to the carcass, latched her jaws to its throat, and drained it dry of blood. She pounced on a second herdbeast and again ripped its belly open and again struggled in a contest of wills between her and her rider. Her struggle was shorter this time as she submitted and drank the blood of the herdbeast. As she was drinking, her body began to glow brightly. All the gathered bronzes were humming and twitching in anticipation. Solth drained two more carcasses before screaming her challenge to the assembled bronzes. With a mighty leap and a strong flap of her wings, she took to the air and was clear of the weyr bowl in mere seconds. With a loud chorus of bugles, all the bronzes took off after her an instant later.

H'cup watched them go, then turned to Tannluth.

"What's happening now?"

Tannluth was still looking in the direction the bronzes took off. He said; _:They're chasing her. All of them will keep up for about an hour, then they will quit one by one. When it comes down to two or three bronzes left, Solth will taunt them by flying closer to them. That is when the bronze who has the most influence over the weyr and its dragons will catch her:_

"And right now that bronze is Branth."

Tannluth nodded; _:Yes, and his rider will remain Weyrleader:_ His head came up and his eyes were whirling faster. H'cup became alarmed.

"Tannluth, what is it?"

_:Chrysolth is asking that you come to her weyr. Vailira is asking for you:_

"Just me? What about you?"

_:I'm coming with you, H'cup. You think I would give up a chance to be with Chrysolth?: _Tannluth finished his statement with a snort.

H'cup smiled and shook his head; "Yeah, right, I know, stupid question. Well, lets go!"

They made their way across the weyr bowl to the ground-level junior queen's weyr. Once inside, Tannluth walked over to Chrysolth and touched noses with her. H'cup stood off to the side smiling when he was grabbed from behind by Vailira. H'cup was slightly startled, but turned around in her embrace so he could hug her as well.

"Oh, H'cup, I'm so glad you came!"

"What is it, Vailira? What's wrong?"

"It's the queen, Solth. Her emotions are so strong! It's not affecting Chrysolth because she's too young, but she's picking up the queen's emotions and passing them on to me!"

"And it IS affecting you?"

Vailira didn't answer, just swallowed hard and nodded.

"What do you want me to do?"

"Just be with me, H'cup. I don't want to be alone right now!"

"Sure thing, Vailira. I'm right here, I'm not going anywhere."

H'cup sat with her on the couch holding her hands. He was concerned because she was trembling and breathing heavily.

He asked her; "Vailira, are you all right?"

She looked into his eyes and asked; "H'cup, do you want me?"

"What?"

"You heard what I said, do you want me?"

"You know I do, Vailira, but now is not the time!"

"I don't care if now is not the time! I asked if you want me because I sure as shells want you right now!"

"Vailira, you need to calm down!"

"I don't WANT to calm down! I want to make mad passionate love to the man I have chosen as my weyrmate! To the Red Star with anyone in the weyr who doesn't like it!"

H'cup wasn't getting anywhere by talking to her, so he tried a different tactic.

_"Tannluth, you need to tell Chrysolth to slow down the images she's giving her rider of Solth's flight!"_

_:Why? What's so wrong with sharing this with her rider?:_

_"Trust me buddy, now is not the time for this! Vailira needs to get her emotions back under control!"_

Tannluth snorted, but complied. _:Humans. Sometimes I just don't understand your kind:_

_"Me too, buddy. Me too."_

Vailira's breathing slowed down and her trembling stopped. She took a deep breath before looking up at H'cup sheepishly.

"Sorry about that."

"Hey, hey, it's all right. I've heard these queen flights are pretty intense, but this is the first time I've ever experienced one."

"Same here. I just never thought it would affect me so bad."

"Well, now you know. I think this will be the last queen flight for this turn. By the time Rennsith rises again, Chrysolth would be flying and you can leave the weyr so you can avoid all this!"

Vailira pulled him closer and whispered in his ear; "What makes you think I want to avoid it?"

H'cup turned his head and looked at her, but she winked at him.

They sat together on the couch, talking quietly about events in the weyr while Tannluth provided details of how the flight was progressing. An hour into the flight, he reported that the first bronzes were dropping out. A half hour later, it was down to Branth and Elonth. Ten minutes later, Tannluth announced that Branth had caught Solth.

Vailira leaned back with a sigh of relief; "Well, that's it then."

"Yep."

H'cup started to get up to leave, but was stopped when he receive a fierce hug from Vailira. He hugged her in return and patted her back. Vailira cried a few tears on his shoulder.

Sniffling, she said; "Thank you so much for coming, H'cup. You're my absolute second best friend in the weyr!"

"Who's the first?"

"Chrysolth, of course!" Simultaneously, they both said; "Stupid question!"

Both of them looked at each other with wide eyes before erupting into laughter. It was interrupted by someone at the entrance to the weyr.

J'kun announced his presence by asking; "Vailira? Who's that in there with you?"

Vailira's eyes grew wide in anger; "J'kun, what the blazes are you doing here? Go away!"

J'kun was still in the outer weyr and hasn't seen H'cup or Tannluth yet. He came around the corner saying; "Aw, don't be that way, little queenrider. You know you belong to the bronze...". He froze when he saw H'cup standing next to Vailira. His features went from shock to anger when he looked to the queens couch and saw Tannluth laying next to Chrysolth.

"What is that mutated FREAK doing laying next to my queen?"

Vailira was outraged; "YOUR queen? What makes you think that Chrysolth is YOURS?"

J'kun started to strut; "Well, don't you remember? My Histeth with fly your Chrysolth and then we'll be together!"

H'cup was about to leap onto the idiot and beat some sense into him, but stopped when he heard Vailira laughing hysterically.

"HA HA HA HA! Oh, my, _hee hee hee!_ Y-you think that, _ha ha ha_ since you're a BRONZE rider, _ha ha ha_, that you can just come here and CLAIM me?"

J'kun stammered; "Well, um, er, y-yes, yes I do!"

"AAAHA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! Oh, hee hee hee! Oh, J'kun, you poor pathetic excuse for a man, you need to pull your head out of your nether regions and get a clue! I've never wanted you and I never will! Now, GET OUT! I never want to see you here again!"

J'kun lunged forward and grabbed Vailira by the upper arms. He started shoving her to her bedchambers as he said; "You'll be seeing me whenever I want you! You belong to the bronze riders now, so you might as well accept it!"

Vailira screamed; "Let go of me right now!"

H'cup settled the argument by grabbing a chair and smashing it into J'kun's back. The bronze rider went down in a heap as Vailira staggered away. H'cup went forward and hugged her.

"Are you all right, Vailira?"

She was still trembling in a combination of fear and anger, but nodded her head. She asked; "Is he dead?"

H'cup bent down to check his pulse and shook his head; "No, he's still alive. It's a good thing too, because even if his rider is an idiot, I'd hate to be the cause of Histeth's death."

Vailira nodded; "I know what you mean. H'cup, Weyrleader R'mart is going to want to know what happened here! What are we going to tell him?"

H'cup stood straight, looked her in the eye, and said; "The truth."

o0o0o0o

The case wasn't heard until the second day after the flight in order for the weyrleaders to recover. Since the event happened in Vailira's weyr, she was the first to tell her version of events. When she was finished, R'mart turned to look at H'cup.

"Rider H'cup, can you tell us what happened?"

"Well, sir, Chrysolth asked Tannluth and myself to come to her weyr. Vailira was feeling the effects of Solth's mating flight and wanted some company. We were sitting and talking until the flight concluded. I was getting up to leave when J'kun came into the weyr. He said that Vailira belongs to the bronze riders now and felt that he could come into her weyr anytime he wanted! She told him to leave, but he grabbed her and started pushing her toward her bedchamber. I grabbed a chair and hit him with it in order to stop him."

R'mart turned to J'kun and asked; "Is this true?"

J'kun started sweating. He swallowed and said; "Well, um, Weyrleader, I wouldn't put it quite..."

R'mart slammed his fist into his desk and shouted; "IS THIS TRUE?"

Everyone in the room jumped at R'mart's outburst, but J'kun looked like he was ready to leap out of his skin. When he didn't answer right away, R'mart shouted; "ANSWER THE DAMNED QUESTION!"

J'kun swallowed and said; "It's a well known tradition that queen riders belong to the bronze riders. I was thinking that Vailira was lonely after the mating flight and wanted some company."

Bedella spoke up; "So, you strut your way into Vailira's weyr uninvited thinking she's your personal _loving wench_?"

J'kun shook his head; "No, Weyrwoman, that's not how I..."

Bedella slammed her palm to the desk. "LIAR! You grabbed Vailira around the shoulders and pushed her towards her bedchambers! What were you going to do in there, talk to her?"

In desperation, J'kun pointed to H'cup; "Well, what was HE doing in there? He was with her longer than I was! I tell you, SOMETHING must have been going on!"

R'mart shook his head slowly; "J'kun, I have no idea how you Impressed a bronze dragon, being as stupid as you are. I suppose this episode is the result of the lust caused by a queen mating flight, but you've shown a lack of tact even when NO queens are mating. Go stand outside the door, I'll deal with you later!"

J'kun's eyes were wide; "WHAT? You believe their stories over MINE? R'mart, I've been with this weyr for over ten turns now! We came forward from the Oldtime together! Surely, that counts for something!"

"What it counts for is showing that I've let things get out of hand in this weyr. Now, I say again, GET OUT!"

J'kun looked at R'mart in stunned silence before turning and walking out the office. When the door closed, R'mart sighed and looked at H'cup.

"What WERE you doing in Vailira's weyr, H'cup?"

"Like I said, sir, I was talking to her and keeping her company during the mating flight."

Bedella asked Vailira; "You were feeling the effects of Solth's mating lust?"

Vailira looked at the floor and nodded.

"Then why did you call H'cup?"

Vailira looked up at her and said; "Because he's the only true friend I have in this weyr besides Chrysolth!"

"You haven't made friends with any of the bronze riders?"

Vailira scoffed; "BAH! They disgust me! All they're interested in is my queen! NONE of them really wanted to get to know ME!"

Bedella continued; "But Vailira, you know that when Chrysolth rises, a bronze dragon will fly her!"

Vailira turned and looked at H'cup before saying; "Not necessarily."

R'mart and Bedella exchanged looks of confusion. R'mart asked; "What do you mean by that, Vailira?"

"Tannluth will fly Chrysolth."

Bedella started laughing; "Tannluth? Tannluth is basically a brown dragon! Everyone knows that browns don't fly queens!"

H'cup spoke up; "The only reason that browns don't fly queens is because they can't keep up with a mating flight. Some of the earliest records show that during the time of the Ancients, brown dragons actually did fly queens. There was even an instance of a brown dragon keeping up with a queen flight in more modern times as well. You are aware of the incident with the two queens of Benden?"

Both R'mart and Bedella stiffened. R'mart answered; "How can we forget it? What has that got to do with letting Tannluth participate in a queen flight?"

"If you remember Weyrleader, Canth almost broke up the fight between the two queens. Out of all the bronze dragons participating in that flight, a brown dragon was able to keep up with all of them. Granted, Canth is the largest and strongest brown dragon on Pern, but I believe Tannluth will be even stronger!"

R'mart asked; "What makes you say that, H'cup?"

"Has there ever been a dragon of Pern that started flying at two months of age? It usually takes four to five months for a normal dragon's bones, muscles, and tendons to be strong enough for simple gliding. Tannluth is already flying faster than some of the fully grown green dragons, and he's only four months old!"

"Let's say we did allow Tannluth to fly Chrysolth and he catches her, what kind of offspring would he have?"

"Even if he passes a small part of his ability to his offspring, how much would it benefit the weyr if the dragons he produces were able to fly at an earlier age? You'd be able to replace injured or killed dragons and riders at a much quicker rate. It would only benefit the weyr to keep your fighting wings at full strength!"

R'mart sat back, absorbed in his thoughts. Bedella, however, was quicker to recover.

"It doesn't matter! Brown dragons don't fly queens!"

H'cup said; "Tannluth is a BLACK dragon, Weyrwoman."

"Black, brown, it doesn't matter. He's not BRONZE! And only BRONZES fly queens!"

R'mart spoke up; "That's enough, Bedella!"

She turned to him; "What was that?"

"I said that's enough. I think H'cup has made some very good points."

Bedella blinked; "WHAT? You mean, you're going to ALLOW his dragon to participate in a queen flight?"

R'mart nodded; "I am. Now, it's no guarantee that Tannluth will be the winner of the flight, but I see no downside to it."

"It's preposterous! It goes against tradition! It's wrong on..."

"Be silent, Weyrwoman!"

"WHAT? You can't tell..."

"I said BE SILENT! Now, I've made my decision and you WILL abide by it! Understand?"

Bedella sat back and looked at R'mart in shock. After several seconds of silence, R'mart repeated the question.

"Weyrwoman, I asked do you understand?"

Bedella still didn't answer, just nodded her head.

R'mart nodded as well. Turning to H'cup and Vailira he asked; "Will you two be sharing a weyr now?"

Both H'cup and Vailira were stunned! They didn't have to keep their relationship secret anymore!

H'cup asked as he held Vailira's hand; "Um, we have your permission to do that, sir?"

"I don't see why not, you've both shown how you feel about each other! " Turning to Vailira, he asked; "You're sure about the bronze riders of the weyr?"

She nodded; "Positive!"

R'mart continued; "You are aware that if Tannluth loses the mating flight, you will be with the rider of the winning dragon?"

Vailira nodded. Turning to H'cup, she said with a huge smile on her face; "I am aware of that, sir. Even if another dragon wins the flight, another rider will never win my heart!"

* * *

><p><em>There it is, another chapter done!<em>

_As always, thanks for reading and leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, and now Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!_


	19. Chapter 19 blue skies

**Chapter 19 - Blue Skies**

* * *

><p><em>AN: Hello everyone, it's another update!_

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

* * *

><p>"How much longer?" Vailira asked.<p>

"Not long, it should be any moment now."

H'cup, along with his entire weyrling class and pretty much the entire weyr and numerous guests, were standing on the highest East-facing ridge of the weyr. He had his arm around Vailira and rubbed her shoulder when she shivered in the cool air. They all woke before dawn and made their way to this high point to bear witness to this momentous event.

H'cup looked at her; "You okay?"

Vailira shivered again and smiled at him; "Yeah, I'm okay, I'm just not used to these cool temperatures yet."

H'cup laughed and said; "Heh, this is nothing. You should have seen winters in Berk!"

Vailira glared at him; "You're not helping!"

H'cup started laughing and hugged her tighter.

He started out this morning with Heimdall perched on his shoulder, but right now the bronze fire lizard was nowhere to be seen. Sky and every other fire lizard had disappeared as well. H'cup glanced over to Ch'ser and shook his head. Ch'ser saw him looking his way and apologized.

"H'cup, I SAID I was sorry!"

"Ch'ser, I told you that fire lizards are sensitive to a few things. You can not mention THAT in their presence!"

"Why are they so sensitive to it in the first place? It's not that big of a deal!"

"To them it is. Tannluth tells me it's something he calls 'collective memory'. Individually, their memories are short, but when one fire lizard sees or experiences something traumatic, it's passed on to every other fire lizard on Pern. They also remember it forever."

"How can they remember it forever?"

"That's why it's called collective memory, they all remember it as if it happened to every single one of them. Every time one of them remembers it, it refreshes the memory as if it just happened. That's also why their reactions are so strong. Imagine experiencing not only your own fears of an event, but also feeling everyone else's fears as well."

Ch'ser swallowed and said; "Yeah, that would definitely be a bad thing."

"Yep."

"Well, can I say I'm sorry again?"

H'cup shrugged and said; "Aw, don't worry about it Ch'ser, Heimdall will come back after a little while." Looking to the East, H'cup noticed a bright flash. He shouted; "Hey, look! There it goes!"

Everyone looked at the Red Star and watched a bright point of light in the center of the rogue planet grow larger and larger. To the naked eye, it seemed like the light was expanding to half the size of the planet! Once it reached a certain point however, the ball of light ceased expanding and quickly fell in on itself until it vanished completely. A few observers who truly understood what was happening started applauding enthusiastically. However, there were several non-dragonfolk who were confused about what they just witnessed and voiced their opinions.

"What? That's it? That's all there is to it? I can STILL see the Red Star! The dragonriders were supposed to get rid of it! Why didn't they?"

H'cup was closest to the opinionated Holder, so he spoke up.

"Holder Domar, the plan was to get rid of Thread, not to destroy the Red Star. The explosion you just saw was huge, it would have destroyed half this continent if it occurred here on Pern, but we only had three antimatter engines to use. We would have needed dozens to destroy the entire planet! All we really needed to do was deflect the orbit of the Red Star so the next time it comes by Pern it will never drop Threads on us again!"

"So we don't have to worry about Thread anymore?"

H'cup shook his head. "I didn't say that. I said the NEXT time the Red Star passes, it won't bring Threads with it."

"So we'll still have Thread?"

H'cup nodded; "Just until this Pass is over, but future generations will never have to fear it."

"With no Thread, what will the dragonriders do?"

"Oh, we'll still have a job to do. There's still another forty turns left in THIS pass, so dragons and dragonriders will still be doing their duty protecting Pern."

Domar asked; "And afterward?"

H'cup smiled, winked, and said; "Sorry, Holder Domar, Weyr secrets. I'm not at liberty to discuss it. But I will say we have the issue well in hand!"

o0o0o0o

Two days later, H'cup and Tannluth were in the weyr bowl preparing for their first flight together. Tannluth turned his head to look back at him.

_:How many times are you going to re-adjust the straps? They're fine as they are! Let's go!:_

"Tannluth, you've endured flight training for two sevendays now, you can wait a few more minutes."

Tannluth whined and stomped his feet in his impatience. H'cup just laughed at him as he re-checked the straps of the flying harness. After a sevenday of ground training and a second one using bags of tubers to see if Tannluth could carry H'cup's weight aloft, they were now ready for their first flight together. All of the weyrlings and most of the weyr personnel were gathered outside to watch. Whether it was to cheer them on or hope that they fail, H'cup wasn't sure.

_:Don't worry H'cup, this will be easy. You know what to do and so do I:_

"I know buddy, it's just that I'm a bit nervous after what happened during your last flight."

_:Hey, that wasn't my fault! How was I to know that sack of tubers wasn't secured properly?:_

"Oh, it was secured properly. You purposely went into that spin to throw it off!"

Tannluth snorted in disgust; _:I wanted the stupid things off of me! They threw me off my rhythm and kept shifting the wrong way on my back. I'm lucky not to have crashed into the sides of the weyr bowl because of it!:_

"Well, that's why I'm double checking the straps. I don't want to end up like that sack of tubers!"

Tannluth shivered a bit and said; _:Yeah, that would be a very bad thing. I'm not fond of tubers and I understand that you like yours mashed, but I'm pretty sure I would like 'Mashed H'cup' even less!:_

"Me too buddy, me too." Turning to Weyrlingmaster M'dar, H'cup nodded and said; "Ready."

M'dar walked up beside H'cup and checked the straps. Nodding in satisfaction, he stepped back, raised his fist, and pumped his arm down for the signal to launch. Tannluth bunched the muscles in his legs, stretched his wings high over his back, and leaped into the air with a mighty downstroke of his wings. H'cup prepared himself for launch by crouching low over Tannluth's spine and stiffened the muscles in his neck and back to avoid a possible whiplash from the acceleration. After two mighty wingstrokes, Tannluth had sufficient clearance from the ground and settled down to a more leisurely pace. Stroking his wings a few more times, he came even with the upper peaks of the weyr bowl and leveled off. H'cup looked up and around and was surprised at how fast they got to this height. He raised his arms and shouted with glee.

"WOO-HOO! Tannluth, we're flying!"

Tannluth replied by sounding a long, loud bugle of joy which was echoed by every dragon in the weyr.

"Tannluth, I thought you didn't want to use that aspect of your power?"

_:I don't want to have the dragons rely on me during times of grief in order to ease their pain, but all the dragons are feeling good right now. I'm just extremely happy at this moment and wanted to share my joy with everyone at finally having my RIDER back on my back where he belongs!: _Tannluth emphasized his point by bugling again, long, loud, and joyful.

After listening to the other dragons echoing Tannluth's bugle, H'cup smiled, stroked his neck, and told him; "Let's circle around for a landing, buddy. Weyrlingmaster M'dar told us one circuit of the weyr bowl. Let's not push things too far, okay?"

Tannluth wasn't happy and said so.

_:Aww, H'cup, do we really have to land? I'm not the slightest bit tired! I was just getting used to having you on my back again!:_

"Tannluth, we'll go flying a bit more every day except during Threadfall."

_:Promise?:_

"You betcha!"

Tannluth sighed; _:Oh, all right. Whatever makes the Weyrlingmaster happy:_

H'cup patted his neck and said; "That's the spirit!"

Tannluth circled and descended gradually. When he was a few dozen feet from the floor of the weyr bowl, he flared his wings and used the ground effect to cushion his landing. Once all his airspeed bled off, he backwinged twice and touched down gently. Folding his wings to his sides, he trotted the next few feet to where M'dar was waiting. H'cup took off his helmet and flying goggles and looked at the Weyrlingmaster.

"Well, Weyrlingmaster? How did we do?"

M'dar was shaking his head but smiling as he did so.

"H'cup, you were serious when you said you and Tannluth have flown before?"

"Yes sir. Back on Earth the two of us would go flying every day, sometimes for hours at a time. It didn't take much for me to remember again how to ride a dragon."

M'dar replied; "Well, it certainly shows, not only in how you ride, but in the way that Tannluth flies. It usually takes turns of practice before a dragon and rider could fly as smoothly as the two of you have just done! Excellent, excellent work, the both of you!"

Both H'cup and Tannluth simultaneously told him; "Thank you, Weyrlingmaster."

M'dar's eyes widened as he chuckled; "Heh, that's getting to be a habit with the two of you! H'cup, go ahead and secure the harness so you can report to class. We've got formation drills to review this afternoon. The two of you can go flying after classes are through."

H'cup asked; "We can go flying every day?"

M'dar nodded; "No more than an hour at a time to start, is that clear? Tannluth, we can re-evaluate your conditioning after a sevenday to see if you can make longer flights."

Tannluth nodded and said; _:I understand, Weyrlingmaster. I accept your conditions:_

M'dar nodded at the two of them and turned to walk back to his office. H'cup dismounted and started removing the flight harness.

"You hear that, buddy? We get to go flying every day!"

_:I heard, H'cup. I'm not deaf, you know!:_

"Yeah, I know. I'm just excited that I get to go flying on my own dragon again!"

Tannluth purred and rubbed his head on H'cup's chest.

_:And I'm excited to have my rider back. Flying's not as fun if you're not there to share it with me!:_

o0o0o0o

H'cup was outside the weyr he shared with Vailira strapping the riding harness to Tannluth. After two sevendays of gradually building up his endurance, Weyrlingmaster M'dar was satisfied that Tannluth could carry H'cup anywhere he wanted to go. However, he did have one condition. Since they could not go _between_ yet, they had to check the Thread charts to make sure the skies were clear. Certain that there was no Threadfall between the weyr and the Smithcrafthall for the next few days, H'cup had M'dar's permission to fly there to visit his old friends. He was just getting ready to climb on Tannluth's back when Vailira came out of their weyr wearing her flying gear and carrying an extra set of straps.

H'cup asked; "Where do you think you're going with those?"

Vailira rolled her eyes; "Isn't it obvious? I'm coming with you."

"What about Chrysolth?"

"Chrysolth is fine. She has a full belly and a freshly oiled hide. Before she settled down for her nap, she said she doesn't mind if I went with you. She could always contact me if she needed anything. Besides, we'll only be gone for half a day. We'll be back in time for me to feed her this afternoon."

H'cup turned to Tannluth; "You okay with an extra passenger, buddy?"

Tannluth turned a blue whirling eye on him; _:Sure, no problem. I carried the extra sacks of tubers along with your weight for the last two sevendays to build up my endurance, so I can definitely carry her:_

H'cup silently told him; _"It may be unwise to compare Vailira with a sack of tubers, buddy!"_

Tannluth snorted with amusement at his remark. H'cup threaded the extra straps to Tannluth's riding harness and climbed on. Strapping himself in, he extended a hand to Vailira and helped her up. Checking her straps to make sure she was secure, he told Tannluth that everything was ready. Tannluth bunched his legs beneath him, lifted his wings, and sprang into the air with a powerful downstroke of his wings to clear the ground. After a few more wingbeats, they were clear of the weyr bowl and turned South for the Smithcrafthall.

Tannluth was very swift, so after an hour of flight they were circling the Smithcrafthall. The blue watch dragon bugled a greeting and Tannluth answered with one of his own. They circled one more time to allow the people on the ground to clear the courtyard and Tannluth landed there. Before he was able to finish unfastening his riding straps, H'cup heard the booming voice of the huge Mastersmith.

"H'cup! It's good to see you, my boy!"

H'cup slid off Tannluth's side and was nearly crushed when Fandarel embraced him. Hearing the worried cry from Tannluth, the Mastersmith released H'cup and turned to the black dragon.

"And this is Tannluth? My, how you've grown from the last time I saw you!"

Tannluth crooned and nodded to him.

_:It is good to see you again, Mastersmith:_

Fandarel's eyes went wide. He had spoken to dragons before, but he considered it a special occasion whenever one chose to speak to him. He bowed his head to Tannluth and said; "The honor's mine, Tannluth, and thank you for speaking to me."

Tannluth nodded in reply. Fandarel looked on Tannluth's back and noticed he carried another passenger.

"And who's this? A Queenrider, no less!"

H'cup helped Vailira with her straps and gave her a helping hand to dismount. Holding her hand, he turned and faced the Mastersmith.

"Vailira, this is Mastersmith Fandarel. Mastersmith, meet Vailira, Queenrider of gold Chrysolth and my weyrmate."

After the introduction, Fandarel's eyes went wide in surprise and then he started laughing heartily. Seeing the look of embarrassment on H'cup's face and a look of surprise and confusion on Vailira's, he stopped and apologized.

"Oh, I'm sorry about that. It's just that you never do anything by halves, do you H'cup?" Taking Vailira's hand gently, he placed a kiss on the back of it and told her; "It is a pleasure to meet you, Queenrider Vailira."

Vailira blushed and smiled as she replied; "It is a pleasure to meet you too, Mastersmith."

Fandarel released her hand and patted H'cup on the back as he led him into the Hall.

"Come inside and have lunch with us. You can meet your old friends while you tell us what you've been doing the last few months."

H'cup and Vailira were seated at the Mastersmith's table, laughing and telling stories when their lunch was interrupted by the keening of the dragons outside. All conversation ceased immediately in the dining hall as H'cup mentally spoke to his dragon.

_"Tannluth, what is it? What happened?"_

_:The Masterharper of Pern has just died. The dragons are honoring him:_

H'cup reacted to the news with surprise and a bit of sadness. He never met the Masterharper, but heard that he had done great things for Pern. He stood and addressed the Hall.

"My dragon Tannluth informs me that the Masterharper of Pern has just passed away. The dragons are honoring him for all he has done for Pern. I suggest we do the same."

As he looked around the dining hall, H'cup could see their reactions range from shock, to disbelief, to anger, and to sadness. He looked to his left to where the Mastersmith was seated. Fandarel had huge tears coming from his eyes and was sobbing quietly. H'cup remembered that the two were very good friends. Laying his hand on the Mastersmith's shoulder, the big man looked up at him and nodded. Getting to his feet, Fandarel addressed the Hall.

"We have lost a great man today. Pern will be diminished in his absence, but life will go on. Classes will be dismissed for the rest of the day. We will have a feast tonight in honor of Masterharper Robinton. That will be all."

Fandarel laid his hand on H'cup's shoulder before turning and leaving the dining hall. H'cup turned around and saw that Vailira was still crying.

"Vailira, are you all right?"

Vailira sniffled and smiled; "Yeah, H'cup, I'll be all right. I'm just missing the Masterharper, that's all."

"Did you know him?"

"Not personally, but I did attend a few of his concerts. The Mastersmith was right, we lost a great man today."

H'cup hugged her tightly for a few minutes. Breaking the embrace, he told her; "I'm going outside to check on Tannluth. You want to come with me or do you want to stay in here?"

"I'll be along in a little while. Go on and see if Tannluth is alright."

H'cup hugged her again before walking outside to look for Tannluth. He didn't have to go far as the black dragon was sunning himself in the courtyard. H'cup sat down next to him and started stroking his eye ridges. Tannluth purred and nuzzled his rider. His eyes were whirling a bit slower and changed from yellow to a shade of green.

"How you doing, buddy?"

_:I'm okay. I'm feeling some of the sadness the other dragons have over the loss of the Masterharper. It's not affecting me as badly as it is them:_

"I've never met the man."

_:Neither have I, but I've heard from the other dragons that he had done much for Pern. He was among the few who believed Thread was returning after the long interval and helped the Weyrs prepare for its arrival:_

"Sounds like he was a great man."

_:He was. If he'd have been Searched at an earlier age, he would have been a bronze rider, possibly Weyrleader:_

"Hmm, I guess we'll never know."

o0o0o0o

As the Mastersmith said, life on Pern indeed went on. H'cup and Tannluth continued to fly together every day and Tannluth would take time out of his day to help the other young dragons with their wing strengthening exercises. As a result, all of the dragons in Tannluth's clutch were flying on their own now.

Two months later, H'cup was sitting on Tannluth's back along with the rest of his weyrling class strapped to the backs of their own dragons. Weyrlingmaster M'dar was satisfied that all the young dragons of Tannluth's clutch were strong enough to take their riders on their first flight together. Standing on one of the ledges that could be reached by walking, each of the dragonrider pairs launched themselves from the ledge one by one. They each did a circuit of the weyr bowl and returned to their launch point to receive a satisfied nod from M'dar. Once everyone had a chance to fly, M'dar stood in front of the class and addressed them.

"You have all done exceptionally well! Normally, we don't start the first paired flights until the dragons are nine months of age, but your extra hard work has allowed all of you to fly together at only seven months! Congratulations, each and every one of you for all your hard work. I must point out that you still have a long way to go."

Looking at the dragons, he addressed them specifically; "Understand this, you are NOT to perform the loops and spins you see Tannluth or the other dragons doing! You are still young, and you still have a lot of growing left to do. There will come a time when you can do those things, but you must build your abilities gradually. Do each of you understand this?" Looking at all the young dragons, M'dar was satisfied when he saw each of them nod in reply.

Turning to the bronze and brown riders, he told them; "You have all done an excellent job leading this weyrling class. Each of you will make a fine wingleader or wingsecond some day. I leave it to you to watch this group and make sure they don't get too carried away with flying their dragons."

S'nar spoke up for the group; "Sir, we thank you for your praise, and you can be assured that we will watch the rest of the class to make sure they don't get into trouble. But the credit for getting our dragons to fly early should go to Tannluth. He's the one who showed our dragons his own wing strengthening exercises."

M'dar raised an eyebrow and turned to Tannluth; "Is that so? Well, you'll have to show them to Elonth sometime so we can use them to teach other weyrling dragons. Will that be all right with you, Tannluth?"

Tannluth's eyes were whirling rapidly; _:ABSOLUTELY! I'd be happy to do anything to help the other dragons Weyrlingmaster! Whenever you want me to show Elonth the exercises I've been doing, just let me know:_

M'dar smiled and nodded to him. He nodded to the rest of the group before dismissing them. H'cup, S'nar, and the rest of the bronze and brown riders stayed behind in a group. S'nar was the first to speak.

"Well, boys, that takes care of flight training. You know what comes next."

Ch'ser shivered; "Yeah, _between_."

L'sun, one of the other bronze weyrlings, spoke up; "I remember your promise to the Weyrlingmaster, S'nar. You said that all of us were going to get through _between_ training together."

S'nar nodded and said; "Uh huh, I said it and I meant it. Does anyone have an idea that may help?"

H'cup smiled hugely; "I think I've got something that will work."

* * *

><p><em>That's it, another chapter done!<em>

_A/N: For those of you who are unaware of events in this chapter, they tie closely with Anne McCaffrey's book, "All The Weyrs of Pern". In that book, the computer Aivas came up with a plan to divert the rogue planet enough so it wouldn't come close to Pern enough to bring Thread with it. Using the antimatter engines from the three original colony ships in orbit around the planet, the dragons teleported the engines to a specific spot on the Red Star and detonated them. The resultant explosions are supposed to shift the orbit of the planet._

_Also, Masterharper Robinton was one of THE major characters in the first books. His life (and his death) left quite an impact on Pern.  
><em>

_As always, thanks for reading and leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, and now Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!_


	20. Chapter 20 black between

**Chapter 20 - Black Between**

* * *

><p><em>AN: Hello everyone, it's another update!_

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

* * *

><p><em>:Come on H'cup, PULL!:<em>

"I'm trying, Tannluth. I just can't get a good enough grip!"

_:Well, DO SOMETHING! This itching is making me crazy!:_

"I know, I can feel it myself." Pausing to scratch his own back, H'cup told him; "Hold on for a second, I've got an idea that just might work."

H'cup ran as fast as his leg would allow toward the beast pens. Grabbing a skinning hook and a length of rope from the wall, he told Tannluth to meet him by the big oak tree. Once there, he threw a length of rope over a thick branch and tied the hook to the end. He then had Tannluth stand under the branch. Climbing onto his back, H'cup sank the hooks into the flap of dangling skin. He slid back down and wrapped the other end of the rope around the tree.

"Okay buddy, I want you to walk forward slowly. I'll keep tension on the rope here."

_:You think this will help?:_

"Only one way to find out. Give it a try."

_:Okay, here goes:_

Tannluth took a few steps until the slack in the rope was taken up, then really leaned into it. Once he put his weight into the effort, the skin and scales on his back started to peel away. H'cup was pulling the hooks upward at the same time to keep the skin at the correct angle so it wouldn't tear off.

_:H'cup, it's working, IT'S WORKING!:_

"I see that, buddy. Keep going, you're about halfway there."

Tannluth continued to walk forward slowly, allowing his weight and the rope's tension to pull the undersized skin and scales away from his hide. When H'cup could see that there were only a few inches left, he started to ease the tension he had on the rope. Tannluth didn't have to pull quite so hard, as these were smaller, thinner scales that were close to the base of his tail. Once all the scales were off, Tannluth sighed audibly in relief.

_:Ahhh, that feels SOOO much better!:_

H'cup exhaled in relief as well. He told Tannluth; "Glad you're feeling better, bud."

Tannluth replied; _:Oh yeah, that did the trick, and thank you for your help in getting it off. I couldn't reach it myself with my claws:_

"How did you get rid of the scales on your back when you were on Earth?"

_:Simple, I would get another dragon to help me with it:_

H'cup nodded as he lowered the shed skin to take the hooks out. He was surprised at the thickness of the discarded scales.

"Wow! This is why it was so hard to pull off! Your scales were never this thick before. Why the change between this shedding and the last one?"

_:I remember going through something like this when I grew up back on Earth. The scales are thicker on the back because that is a dragon's vulnerable spot. If a rival dragon can get up and behind one of us and attack, we might not see them coming until it is too late to defend ourselves. The scales on the back are thicker to take the brunt of an attack in case we were caught unawares:_

"But Tannluth, you don't have to defend yourself against other dragons here on Pern! The only thing we'll have to fight is Thread, and I don't know if your scales are going to be any good against that!"

_:Well, we just have to be careful and watch out for each other, will we?:_

H'cup went and hugged his dragon's neck as Tannluth purred.

"Always, bud."

They spent a few moments like that. H'cup finally broke the embrace and started to coil up the rope so he could return it to the beast pens.

"You think your hide needs a bit more oil?"

_:No, I'm fine. I think we're ready for this afternoon:_

H'cup paused in coiling the rope and looked at Tannluth.

"You really think so?"

Tannluth nodded. _:I do. You've done a lot to help the other weyrlings in your class:_

"Well, I didn't do it alone. I had help."

Tannluth nodded again; _:That's true, but you were the one who came up with the idea in the first place:_

H'cup sighed and mumbled under his breath; "Yeah, and I hope it doesn't get anyone killed!"

o0o0o0o

That afternoon, H'cup's entire weyrling class were mounted on their dragons and sitting on a ledge close to the weyr's Star Stones. After two sevendays of constant lectures and lessons, Weyrlingmaster M'dar felt that they were ready for their first _between_ flight. Taking a deep breath, he addressed the group.

"I won't bore you with details, I've already hammered those into you over the last two sevendays. All of you have come a long way and I'm very proud of each and every one of you."

T'yner leaned closer to H'cup and whispered; "Why do I get the feeling he's giving us a farewell speech?"

H'cup put his hand over his mouth to hide his grimace. M'dar noticed their exchange and loudly addressed T'yner.

"Do you have anything to share with the rest of the class, weyrling T'yner?"

T'yner sat up straight on Granth's back and said; "Sir, no sir!"

"Then pay attention! This is a very dangerous exercise you are about to perform and you have to keep your wits about you! I'd hate to lose a rider because they didn't listen to directions and their excuse was they were chatting with friends!"

T'yner swallowed hard and said; "Sorry, sir! Won't happen again, sir!"

M'dar nodded; "See that it doesn't." Turning to the rest of the weyrlings, he said; "Now, one at a time, you will launch, fly above the Star Stones, and fix that picture in your mind. Then I want you to fly across the weyr bowl and confirm the visualization you have of your destination with Elonth. You will WAIT for his confirmation before going _between_ to your destination. I can't stress enough to WAIT for confirmation from Elonth! Once you have confirmation, transfer _between _and keep the destination fixed firmly in your mind throughout the transfer. Now, who wants to go first?"

S'nar spoke up; "Sir, Nermoth and I will go first."

M'dar nodded to him; "Very well, good luck, weyrling."

M'dar raised his fist and dropped it in the signal to launch. Nermoth leaped from the ledge and flew up above the Star Stones. He hovered there for several seconds while his rider memorized the coordinates. Turning around, he flew to the other side of the weyr bowl. Once there, he stopped and hovered in place while he confirmed the destination with Elonth. Upon receiving confirmation, they transferred _between. _When they disappeared, the rest of the class turned to the space above the Star Stones and did a slow count. Upon reaching the count of eight, Nermoth and S'nar burst out of _between_ exactly where they were supposed to be. All of the weyrlings cheered and their dragons bugled as Nermoth glided in to land on the ledge. M'dar walked up to him and clasped his forearm.

"Congratulations, Dragonrider S'nar."

S'nar's eyebrows went up. "Dragonrider, sir? Not 'weyrling' anymore?"

M'dar smiled and said; "Oh, you'll still have lessons, but a human and dragon pair are considered weyrlings until they have made their first _between_ flight. So, excellent job, Dragonrider S'nar."

S'nar smiled hugely and said; "Thank you, sir, but it was Nermoth who did all the work."

M'dar looked at the bronze dragon. Nermoth craned his head around to look at the weyrlingmaster.

"He did, eh? Well, good job, young Nermoth."

The dragon didn't reply, but his eyes were whirling a happy blue as he nodded his head at the weyrlingmaster. M'dar nodded in return and turned to the rest of the class.

"Who's next?"

Each of the weyrling pairs flew from the ledge and completed their first _between_ flight. After each flight, all the pairs were greeted with cheers from their classmates, bugles from their dragons, and a forearm clasp from M'dar. The weyrlingmaster was watching the proceedings with a mixture of awe and a bit of trepidation. No one was lost _between_ yet! This was unprecedented! Of course, he was very happy not to lose anyone, but it was getting down to the final pairs and H'cup and Tannluth had yet to make their flight. He certainly hoped he wouldn't lose _them_! When it was H'cup's turn, M'dar looked him in the eye and nodded.

"Good luck, weyrling."

"Thank you, sir."

Raising his fist, M'dar dropped in in the signal to launch. Tannluth flew above the Star Stones and hovered. H'cup spent a few extra moments memorizing the scene before him. He then had Tannluth fly to the other side of the weyr bowl. Tannluth turned and hovered while he waited for confirmation from Elonth. Once Elonth confirmed the coordinates, H'cup leaned down and stroked Tannluth's neck.

"Okay, this is it, buddy. Take us _between_ to those coordinates."

_:You got it. Don't worry H'cup, this will be easy!:_

H'cup barely had time for the thought; _"I sure hope so"_ before his world turned black.

_Between!_ No light, no sound, no sense of being, just utter cold and blackness. H'cup couldn't even feel Tannluth underneath him! He remembered to keep the destination in his mind, but he couldn't help but notice a tinge of doubt trickle into his mind. He reached out mentally to his dragon.

_"Tannluth?"_

The reply was totally calm; _:Relax, we're doing fine:_

H'cup didn't have time to respond before they burst out of _between_, exactly where they were supposed to be. Tannluth descended to the ledge amidst a chorus of cheers and bugles. M'dar had a huge smile on his face as he came up to H'cup and clasped his forearm.

"Congratulations, Dragonrider H'cup."

H'cup smiled back. "Thank you, sir." H'cup's eyes went unfocused. "Tannluth thanks you as well."

M'dar looked at Tannluth who had his head turned back to watch the proceedings.

"You're welcome, young Tannluth."

The black dragon bowed his head and purred happily. M'dar turned to the rest of the class.

"Congratulations one and all, you are now Dragonriders!"

The entire group started cheering and bugling in celebration. When they were finished, M'dar turned to S'nar.

"I seem to recall your promise that all the members of your class would make it through their first _between_ flight. I'm glad that you were able to keep your promise, but can you tell me how you prepared everyone so they all would make it?"

S'nar shuffled his feet and said; "Well, sir, I can't take all the credit, it was H'cup's idea!"

M'dar turned to him and asked; "H'cup?"

Now it was H'cup's turn to shuffle his feet as he said; "Well, I may have come up with the idea, but it was Ch'ser who got the dragons to help!"

M'dar was getting a little irritated as he turned to Ch'ser and said; "I suppose you're going to give someone else the credit for this idea of yours?"

Ch'ser gulped and said; "Um, well, yes sir. It was actually my dragon Hurth who thought of it."

M'dar threw up his hands and nearly shouted; "Will someone, ONE person, please tell me what you did?"

H'cup stepped forward; "Sir, I had the idea of getting the weyrlings used to going _between _before they made their first flight on their own dragons."

M'dar raised an eyebrow; "And how did you do that? You didn't have them make trips _between_ on their OWN dragons, did you?"

H'cup waved his hands; "Oh, no sir, I certainly wouldn't do that. I just went around to some of the off duty riders and had them give the weyrlings a bunch of trips _between_."

M'dar nearly exploded; "You did WHAT?"

H'cup gulped in nervousness; "I, um, had the weyrlings go _between_ on other dragons so they wouldn't be so afraid of it. A few of us weren't scared of it because we've been through it a bunch of times. My duties as a Journeyman had me going back and forth from the Smithcrafthall and Landing so many times that _between_ didn't bother me any more. S'nar and a few of the other weyrbred also have been _between_ quite a few times. But there were several who have experienced it only once, and that was when they were brought here for Impression. I figured if they went through it as many times as the rest of us had, they wouldn't fear it so much."

M'dar held his temper in check; "Rider H'cup, do you know why we don't do that with the weyrling classes?"

H'cup nodded; "Yes sir. I had Vailira check the records and she told me that sometimes a young dragon will suicide _between_ because they can't feel their rider in their mind if their rider went _between_ on another dragon."

"And how did you overcome this? Because obviously all of the dragons are still here."

"Most of the dragons were pretty steady. They knew this was for their rider's benefit, but a few of them were really nervous about being separated from their riders. Hurth had the idea to have the other dragons constantly talking to the ones who were nervous. They also laid their necks across theirs so they wouldn't feel so alone for the few seconds they were separated from their rider's mind. After they went through that a few times, their nervousness dissipated and were fine when their riders went _between_ again."

M'dar seemed to be making up his mind about what H'cup just told him. After a few moments, he sighed and lowered his head. When he spoke again he had his anger under control, but H'cup could tell he was highly perturbed.

"Rider H'cup, while I'm extremely relieved that no riders were lost today, I'm not totally comfortable with how you went about getting the riders used to going _between_. Now don't get me wrong, you had a wonderful solution that worked, but you need to check with me BEFORE you do something so radical again! Do we have an understanding?"

H'cup nodded, relieved that the weyrlingmaster wasn't completely angry at him.

"Yes, Weyrlingmaster, I understand. I apologize for not coming to you with my idea before I implemented it and assure you that it won't happen again!"

M'dar nodded, apparently satisfied that H'cup understood the dangers involved in trying untested methods of training. He thought to himself; _"H'cup is impetuous, but his idea worked, so maybe it has merit. We'll have to see about using it for the next group of weyrlings." _He looked at the other riders in H'cup's class and addressed them.

"You all can have the rest of the day off. You can practice going _between_ on your dragons, but ONLY go to places that you know by heart! Make sure you fly above the weyr to memorize the layout so you would have a point of reference for your return trip. Dismissed."

Once the class broke up, T'yner went to H'cup and quietly said; "H'cup, I seem to recall a certain black rider who went South to Landing the same day his dragon hatched. Why didn't Tannluth go _between_ then?"

H'cup shivered a bit before he answered; "T'yner, I never would have done that if I'd have known about the young dragons going _between_ when they can't feel their riders. Tannluth was fine because I figure it's because he was asleep and his mind wasn't aware of my absence. I also had my fire lizard Heimdall there to keep him company."

Tannluth chose that moment to speak up.

_:I never would have left you, H'cup. All you had to do was explain things and I would have understood. Besides, now that I know how to go _between_, you'll never have to ride another person's dragon because you'll always have me!:_

o0o0o0o

The next restday, H'cup wanted to go to the Smithcrafthall to see how his friends were doing. Once he strapped himself on securely, he had Tannluth launch himself from the ledge above their weyr. When they were clear of the weyr bowl, H'cup asked Tannluth to go _between _to the Smithcrafthall, but he refused.

"Huh? What's wrong Tannluth? You don't want to go to the Smithcrafthall?"

_:Yes, I want to go, but it's such a beautiful day and I want to stretch my wings! How about a straight flight there and we can go _between_ on the way back?:_

H'cup thought about it for a moment, shrugged, and said; "Sure, why not?"

_:All right! Hang on, here we go!:_

H'cup leaned forward into the blast of wind that was howling around them now. He whooped with joy as Tannluth echoed his yells with a bugle of his own. After twenty minutes of hard, fast flying, Tannluth settled down to a more leisurely pace. H'cup leaned down and stroked his neck.

"You feeling okay, buddy? That was some pretty fast flying back there!"

Tannluth was huffing a little, but his wings were still held out straight.

_:Yeah, I'm okay. I'm just getting my second wind:_

"Go ahead and take all the rest you need." As Tannluth flew above some ridges to catch some updrafts, H'cup thought back to something the weyrlingmaster said about only going _between_ to places you were familiar with. His head snapped up when he had an idea.

"Hey buddy, you remember what Weyrlingmaster M'dar said about only going _between _to places you knew by heart?"

_:Yeah? What about it?:_

"Well, there is one place that both of us are VERY familiar with. We should have no problem getting there!"

Tannluth's flying faltered slightly as he said; _:You're not thinking of what I think you're thinking?:_

H'cup laughed at Tannluth's words, but missed their serious tone.

"Ha, ha, very funny, but yes, I'm thinking of a visit to Berk!"

Tannluth didn't answer, instead his head started sweeping left to right. He seemed to be searching for something. Once he found it, he folded his wings and dove. H'cup scrambled forward for the handle.

"Hey, take it easy! Tannluth, what is it? What's wrong?"

The answer was short and sharp; _:Looking for a place to land:_

"You're landing? What is it? Are you hurt?"

Tannluth kept silent and continued his steep dive toward the ground. When he was close to a clearing, he pulled up from his dive, flared his wings to bleed off airspeed, and touched down roughly. H'cup thought it was one of his worse landings.

After a few moments of silence, H'cup asked him; "Hey, Tannluth, you okay, buddy?"

Tannluth just snorted; _:Off!:_

"Huh?"

_:Get off! I've got something to say to you and I want to look you in the eyes while I do it!:_

"Tannluth, whatever it is I'm sure we could..."

_:NOW!:_

H'cup never heard that tone from his dragon! He scrambled to release the straps and slid down Tannluth's side. When his feet touched the ground, Tannluth turned around and looked at him with rapidly swirling orange eyes and was growling low in his throat. For the first time since he Impressed, H'cup felt a bit scared in the dragon's presence.

"T-tannluth? I-is there something wrong?"

Tannluth stopped his growling when he saw H'cup's reaction. He closed his eyes and shook his head. When he opened his eyes again, they were yellow and swirling less rapidly.

_:H'cup, I-I'm sorry I scared you like that! I love you and I would NEVER hurt you, I would rather die first! It's just that what you said made me very angry! I just want to say a few things to you about it, that's all:_

H'cup blinked; "Angry? What did I say to make you this angry?"

_:I'm angry because what you have in mind will more than likely kill us both! H'cup, you're the smartest human I know, but you haven't thought through the implications about going back to Berk!:_

"Sure I have! We've seen it from the air hundreds of times! We'll just go back to the cove...OW!" Tannluth used his tail to slap him on the back of the head. H'cup rubbed his head and yelled at the dragon; "What the shards was that for?"

_:You're still not thinking! Have you thought about WHAT Berk we'll be going back to?:_

"What do you mean, 'What Berk'? It's the Berk we've always..." H'cup paused when he realized what his dragon was trying to tell him.

Tannluth nodded; _:Yeah, now you get it:_

"But Tannluth, that shouldn't be a problem! If Lessa could go back in time to bring forward the Oldtimers, we should be able to as well!"

Tannluth shook his head; _:There you go again, thinking with your heart and not your head. You've read the records, I can see it in your memories. Do you remember the part that Lessa almost DIED on the trip back into the past? She made a time jump of four hundred turns, you're think of a jump of over four THOUSAND! Here's one other thing to mull over. When Lessa made her jump, she started and finished it in the same location, Ruatha. The time jump you have planned would not only be ten times longer backward in time, but would also have to cover the distance between planets!: _

"Isn't distance something that's not a consideration when going _between_?"

_:Only when it's on Pern. When the dragons took the engines off the colony ships and brought them to the Red Star, the times spent _between_ were different. It took a bit longer to go _between_ to the colony ships in orbit and even longer to the Red Star! I can't imagine how long it would take to make a trip _between_ to Earth!:_

"Tannluth, I'm sure we can do it! The reason why Lessa nearly died _between_ is because she nearly suffocated from lack of air. The spacesuits we refurbished are supposed to protect us from environments like that. All I have to do is borrow a spacesuit from Landing. Dragons can stay up to fifteen minutes in space, so you should be able to stay a little bit longer _between_. I'm sure we can make the trip in that length of time."

Tannluth shook his head. He wasn't getting through to H'cup, so he tried a different tactic.

_:You're just going to go ahead and leave Vailira?:_

"WHAT? NO! Tannluth, why would you think such a thing? If we go to Berk, it will be for a visit, that's all. We'll be coming right back!"

_:So, you're just going to visit, say hello, and then leave? Because IF we make it back to Berk and IF you can convince everyone you're not a ghost, they're not going to want you to leave:_

Sounding a little more desperate, H'cup said; "I'll tell them I have duties here on Pern. I'm sure they'll understand."

_:I don't think they will, but let's say they do. Even if your father and the rest of the village lets you go, Astrid most certainly will not. She will insist on coming with you. How are you going to convince her to stay in Berk? Because I think a meeting between her and Vailira would be a Very Bad Thing:_

H'cup stood in silence, too stunned to speak. Tannluth stepped forward and rubbed his snout on H'cup's chest while crooning sadly in his throat.

_:H'cup, I know you miss your family and you wanted to see them again, but even if we made it back to Earth your reunion with them would only create more problems. I hate to sound harsh, but they're gone, they've been gone for over four thousand turns. You need to live your own life here, now, on Pern:_

H'cup bent forward and hugged the large black head as he cried openly.

"I miss them so much, buddy. I never had the chance to say goodbye."

_:I know exactly how you feel, H'cup. I felt the same way when the demon murdered my family right in front of me:_

"How did you deal with it?"

_:I lived on. I didn't really have a choice as the demon refused to kill me, but I made it my life's purpose to help the other dragons. When you shot me down, my purpose changed from protecting the dragons to protecting you. When we were snatched out of the sky and brought here, my purpose changed yet again. Now, not only am I protecting you, but my main purpose is also protecting Pern. You need to see it the same way:_

"What, and just totally give up my old life?"

Tannluth pulled his head back and looked H'cup straight in the eye.

_:Yes. In a way, when that machine sent us through time and space, it really DID kill us. Toothless the Prophet Singer died on Earth, but here on Pern I am Tannluth the Black Dragon. In a way, it's the same for you. You are no longer Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, heir to the Chief of the tribe of Berk. Now you are H'cup, Journeyman Smith and Black Dragonrider:_

"But what about my family?"

Tannluth rubbed his snout on H'cup's chest again as he crooned.

_:H'cup, you have me. You will ALWAYS have me! I will never, EVER leave you! If that's not enough, I seem to recall a certain Queenrider who chose to be with you as well. Can you consider that your family here on Pern?:_

H'cup hugged the black head again as he said; "You certainly have a unique way of seeing things, buddy."

Tannluth snorted in amusement and said; _:Welcome to a dragon's perspective:_

H'cup laughed along with him for a few moments. Wiping his eyes, he stepped around to Tannluth's side, climbed on his back, and fastened the riding straps. Once he was secured, he told Tannluth he was ready. Tannluth launched quickly and was soon soaring steadily.

_:Do you still want to go to the Smithcrafthall?:_

"No, I changed my mind. You've given me a lot to think about, buddy. Can you take me back to Telgar Weyr?"

_:Of course. Do you want to fly straight or go _between_?:_

"You've done enough flying for today, how about a quick trip _between_?"

Tannluth grumbled quietly; _:I never get enough of flying!:_ but transferred both of them _between_. When they emerged over Telgar Weyr, the watch dragon called out a challenge and Tannluth replied with his own bugle. Circling down into the bowl, he landed lightly in front of their weyr. H'cup dismounted, removed the riding straps, and laid a hand on Tannluth's neck.

"You want to come inside or are you going to stay out here?"

_:I think I'll stay out here. I'm pretty sure I saw Chrysolth on one of the lower ledges as we circled in to land:_

H'cup laughed and slapped his side; "Well, go on, you don't want to keep your lady friend waiting!"

Tannluth winged away and landed on one of the lower ledges next to a pale gold shape. H'cup smiled when he saw Tannluth settle beside her and walked into the weyr he shared with Vailira. Once in the inner weyr, he noticed Vailira sitting on a couch reading some record skins. She put them to the side and smiled when she saw him walking in.

"H'cup! I thought you would be at the Smithcrafthall all day. Why are you back so early?"

H'cup sat down next to her and took her in his arms. He then proceeded to kiss her, gently at first and then with more passion as she responded. When they broke apart, Vailira looked dreamily into his eyes.

"Well, hel-lo to you too. What brought that on?"

"No reason, I'm just very glad to be home."

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><p><em>That's it, another chapter done!<em>

_A/N: (1) For those who don't know what it is, a skinning hook is a metal bar about 18 inches long bent into a flattened V shape. It has a hook on either end and a metal ring in the center for attaching a rope or hanging on a wall. It is used to hang a carcass by the feet so it can be skinned after butchering it._

_(2) When Tannluth sheds his scales, it is very similar to how a snake does it. The scales on his back are similar to a crocodile, very thick and tough. That's why H'cup had trouble with it._

**_As always, thanks for reading and leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, and now Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!_**


	21. Chapter 21 blastrock

**Chapter 21 - Blastrock**

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><p><em>Hello everyone, it's another update!<em>

_A/N: You can tell throughout this story that Tannluth is quite a bit different from the rest of the dragons of Pern. This chapter will show just HOW different he is. Enjoy._

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

* * *

><p><em>:Is that it?:<em>

"Yeah, buddy, that's it."

_:Hrmph, doesn't look like much from this distance:_

"Trust me bud, it's much, much scarier up close!"

_:I can imagine. I've seen the results when the dragons return to the Weyr:_ Tannluth shivered involuntarily as he remembered the terrible wounds on dragon and rider alike.

Tannluth and H'cup, along with the rest of his training group, were ferrying firestone to the dragonriders flying against Thread above Crom Hold. Since this was their first flight this close to a Fall, this was the first time Tannluth and the rest of the dragons had actually seen it. They were close enough to resupply the riders fighting the Fall, but far enough away so they weren't threatened by it.

_:When are they going to let us fight Thread?:_

"The Weyrlingmaster said we'll be allowed to fly against Thread when you've shown that you can flame properly. Be patient, you haven't even started chewing firestone yet."

_:And when do we start that?:_

"Either tomorrow or the next day, depending on how many injuries they have to treat after this Fall."

o0o0o0o

It turned out that particular Fall was relatively light and injuries were few. Tannluth and the rest of the young dragons along with their riders were assembled outside the weyr the following day to practice chewing firestone. Holding up a piece of the black rock in his hand, M'dar was standing in front of the group giving directions.

"Riders, what we have here is firestone, without which your dragon cannot flame Thread. You're going to feed this to your dragon a piece at a time. Don't use anything bigger than your fist at first. Dragons, you will chew the firestone thoroughly. The most important part of learning how to chew firestone properly is when you swallow it. You MUST think of your second stomach, that is where the firestone must go. We don't know why this works, it's just that it does. If you don't, the firestone will go to your regular stomach and make you sick. It won't permanently hurt you, but you'll be miserable for a few candlemarks. So, it's VERY important to think of your second stomach when swallowing the chewed stone."

"Now, don't get discouraged if you can't flame at first, most dragons can't on their first try. You may just belch a lot, but keep trying. Sometimes it takes a little while before your second stomach produces the acids needed to produce flame. Whether or not you flame, your body cannot digest the stone from your second stomach. You will feel the need to regurgitate, so don't be scared because it's perfectly normal. Once you're done getting rid of the ash, start chewing more stone and try again. Riders, start feeding your dragons firestone."

H'cup stood in front of Tannluth with a bag of firestone. Taking a fist-sized piece, he tossed it into the dragon's open mouth. When Tannluth started chewing, H'cup was startled by how loud the crunching was.

"Is the crunching supposed to be that loud?"

_:Well, it IS rock:_

"Yeah, dumb question. Doesn't that hurt your mouth?"

_:Nope. I've chewed up bones harder than this. Tastes terrible, though:_

H'cup laughed; "You're not eating it for its nutritional value, buddy."

_:True, very true:_ When Tannluth was ready to swallow, he told H'cup; _:Okay, I'm thinking of my second stomach:_ and swallowed. Tannluth stood still and blinked a few times.

"Anything?"

_:Not yet, better give me another piece:_ and opened his mouth again.

H'cup gave Tannluth half a dozen stones before something happened. The dragon's stomach rumbled ominously and H'cup stood off to the side so he wouldn't get burned in case Tannluth started flaming. Tannluth opened his mouth, aimed his muzzle at some bales of hay that were set up as targets, squeezed his diaphragm, and let out a long, loud belch that got the attention of the whole class. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked in their direction. H'cup looked around and shrugged his shoulders.

"Sorry."

S'nar, T'yner, and several other riders were clapping.

"Good one, Tannluth!"

"Yeah, I think they heard you all the way over at Benden Weyr with that one!"

Tannluth's eyes were whirling blue as he bowed his head in acknowledgment to the other riders. Turning his head to H'cup, he opened his mouth for more firestone.

"Do you need to get rid of the old stuff first?"

_:No, I think I can take a bit more before I have to regurgitate. Let's try again, shall we?:_

H'cup shrugged; "Okay, it's your stomach" and tossed a piece into Tannluth's open mouth.

The rest of that morning, Tannluth tried chewing firestone several more times, each time ending in a loud, long belch and little else. He was getting a little discouraged because most of the other dragons produced SOME kind of flame. H'cup stood at his neck, petting him and giving him encouragement.

"Hey, don't give up now, buddy. You heard the Weyrlingmaster, sometimes it takes a little while before a dragon can produce flame. You just have to keep trying, that's all."

Tannluth whined; _:But H'cup, I've been able to do everything else before all the other dragons! Why not this?:_

"I don't know, bud. We just have to keep trying."

And try they did. For the next two sevendays, all of them were outside the weyr practicing. All of the dragons except Tannluth had produced flame of some kind now. The bronzes and browns were flaming steadily and were practicing control in aiming. The greens and blues were flaming as well, but they would still expel their flame all at once instead of letting it loose in an even stream. H'cup was watching these proceedings and was steadily growing concerned about Tannluth's inability to flame. He was going to ask the Weyrlingmaster if there was anything they could do, but that decision was taken out of his hands when M'dar walked up to them.

"Rider H'cup."

"Sir?"

"Tannluth hasn't produced any flame yet?"

"No sir, just loud belches."

Turning to the dragon, M'dar asked; "Tannluth, are you sure the firestone is going to your second stomach?"

_:Positive, Weyrlingmaster. It feels different than eating food, so I know it's getting there:_

Scratching his chin, M'dar said; "Hmmm, this is something I've never heard of before. Tannluth, when we're done here I want you to go to the dragon healer and have him check you over. Maybe he will have some answers."

_:Yes, Weyrlingmaster:_

That afternoon, Tannluth and H'cup flew across the weyr bowl and landed outside the healer's cavern. H'cup walked in and asked for the dragon healer. An older man with Blue Rider knots on his shoulder asked him what he wanted.

"I'm looking for the dragon healer, Blue Rider."

"Well, you found him, Black Rider. What can I help you with?"

"I was told by Weyrlingmaster M'dar to have my dragon checked over. He's been chewing firestone for two sevendays and can't produce flame. The Weyrlingmaster and I were hoping you would have some answers for us."

The dragon healer grabbed some instruments from a shelf and went outside. He walked up to Tannluth and bowed his head. When Tannluth bowed his head in reply, the dragon healer turned to H'cup.

"You say he hasn't been able to produce flame? He seems healthy enough."

"Yes, dragon healer. We don't know what is wrong."

"Well, we'll try to find out. And by the way, my name is Z'tan."

"Pleased to meet you, Z'tan. My name is H'cup and this is..."

"Tannluth, yes, I know. Everyone in the weyr has heard about you two. Pleasure to meet you at last."

_:It is a pleasure to meet you too, healer Z'tan:_

Z'tan's eyes shot up as Tannluth spoke to him. He was used to having the riders relay their dragons responses. This was something new to him.

"Well, thank you for speaking with me Tannluth. I've heard that you would talk to people other than your rider. You definitely are unique among dragons."

Tannluth bowed his head and said; _:Thank you, healer Z'tan: _

"Well, let's see what we have here."

Z'tan took out his stethoscope and listened to Tannluth's heart and stomach. He took a small glow basket and had Tannluth open his mouth wide so he could look down his throat. He would pause his examination to ask specific questions of both Tannluth and H'cup. When he was done, he stood back and scratched the back of his neck.

"Well Tannluth, I don't know what's wrong because by all accounts you're a perfectly healthy dragon. I have no idea why you cannot produce flame because from what I can see in examining you is that you should. I'd hate to say it but you may not be physically able to flame."

_:NO! I refuse to accept that!:_

H'cup spoke up; "Buddy, Z'tan could be right. This is something we may have to accept."

Tannluth shook his head; _:No, I don't believe that, and neither do you! You're smart, H'cup. You'll figure something out!:_

"Tannluth, this isn't like fixing something mechanical. We're talking about how your body works. This is beyond my ability to fix!"

Tannluth closed his eyes and took a breath before continuing.

_:I'm not asking you to cut me open and fix whatever is wrong inside me. I'm just asking to check the records to see if something like this has happened in the past. Maybe they also knew how to correct it. Once we've exhausted all our options, then and only then will I accept that nothing can be done about my condition:_

H'cup stepped forward and hugged his neck.

"You sure, buddy? I may find nothing at all."

_:Even if you found nothing that would help, I'd feel better knowing that you did everything you could:_

H'cup hugged him tighter and said; "I promise to do whatever I can, Tannluth."

Tannluth purred and nuzzled him as he said; _:I know you will:_

o0o0o0o

H'cup and Vailira spent the next two sevendays poring over the weyr's older records. H'cup was getting a bit discouraged until Vailira found something in one of the earliest records about dragons chewing firestone.

"H'cup, take a look at this."

"What is it?"

"It's an early record of firestone chewing. It tells of a dragon that tried chewing a different kind of firestone and nearly died."

"Died? How does that help us?"

"Look at what it says on what happened. When the dragon ate the stone, the gas expanded so rapidly in his stomach that he almost didn't get it out in time. Even so the flame was hotter than what any of the other dragons were producing. They never used it again because of what almost occurred."

"Vailira, you're asking me to risk Tannluth's LIFE to try and see if he can flame with this different kind of firestone?"

"H'cup, look at him! He's miserable! All the other dragons in his hatching group are flaming steadily. Some of them have already been tapped to join the fighting wings! You need to try this for his sake!"

H'cup turned to look at Tannluth lying on the dragon couch next to Chrysolth. He did seem quite a bit more lethargic than his normal self.

"Well buddy, do you want to try this?"

Tannluth's head came up and his eyes changed from yellow to green. He bounded from the couch and stood outside the weyr.

_:ABSOLUTELY! Let's go!:_

Vailira laughed, kissed H'cup and said; "Well, there's your answer. Good luck."

H'cup hugged her tight and said; "Thanks. I'll see you later today."

"You better! Remember there's Threadfall this afternoon!"

Grabbing his flying gear, H'cup strapped the harness to Tannluth and climbed on. Once the harness was secure, he gave the signal to launch. Tannluth took off and cleared the weyr bowl. When they were in open air, H'cup had Tannluth go _between_ to Crom Minehold.

Tannluth burst out of _between_ over Crom and answered the challenge bugle from the Hold's watch dragon. Landing in the courtyard, they were greeted by a Journeyman miner.

"How can I help you, Black Rider?"

"I'm here to see Masterminer Nicat, Journeyman. Is he available?"

"The Masterminer is in his office. Wait here and I'll see if he's not too busy."

As the Journeyman ran off, H'cup unstrapped himself and slid down Tannluth's side.

"Do you want to wait here or do you want to go up to the watch heights?"

_:I think I'll go to the watch heights. The old brown dragon Dorinth sounded like a friendly sort:_

H'cup slapped him affectionately on the side and said; "Go on buddy, I'll call you when I'm done here."

Tannluth winged away and landed on the ridge. Just as the dust from Tannluth's departure was settling, the Masterminer came out of the main cavern.

"Hello dragonrider, how may I be of service?"

H'cup turned around and extended his hand.

"Masterminer Nicat, it is a pleasure to meet you. My name is H'cup, rider of black dragon Tannluth."

"BLACK dragon? I've heard there was one at Telgar Weyr. That wouldn't happen to be yours now, would it?"

H'cup nodded; "Yes, that's my dragon all right. He's up on the watch heights right now talking with your watch dragon."

Nicat turned and looked where H'cup was pointing. "So he is. Handsome fellow." Turning back to H'cup he said; "Let's talk in my office."

H'cup followed the Masterminer to his office. Taking a seat on the couch, H'cup poured himself a mug of klah from the pitcher on the table. The Masterminer refilled his mug and sat behind his desk.

"So, what can I do for you today, Rider H'cup?"

"Actually sir, I'm hoping you'd be able to do something to help my dragon."

"Oh, in what way?"

"Well, sir, he's got a problem. You see, he can't flame. Ordinary firestone doesn't seem to work for him. I checked the old records and it tells of a dragon who tried chewing a different kind of firestone. I was hoping you can tell me if you have a different type. Maybe that can help him with his problem."

Nicat rubbed his chin and said; "Hmmm, the only thing that comes to mind is blastrock."

"Blastrock, sir?"

"Hm? Oh, yes, sorry. Blastrock is the term we use for a naturally occurring rock that we sometimes find under layers of firestone. When we see indicators of it, we cease mining in that section and call in specially trained miners to excavate it."

"Why is that, sir?"

"Because it's very unstable. You can do almost anything you want with firestone, just don't expose it to a dragon's stomach acids and you'll be fine. Not so with blastrock. If you get it wet, it becomes inert. But the thing you definitely do NOT want to do is expose it to fire."

"What happens when it does come into contact with fire?"

"It explodes."

H'cup started taking a drink of klah from his mug. He sputtered, coughed, and choked when he heard the Masterminer's words.

"_Ehrm,_ um, excuse me? Did you say _explodes_?"

"Yes, that's why we call it blastrock. Very handy for opening tunnels or collapsing old ones. You aren't thinking of giving some to your dragon, are you?"

"Actually, sir, I am. Like I said before, ordinary firestone does nothing when Tannluth chews it. I'm pretty confident he'll be able to handle this blastrock."

The Masterminer raised his eyebrow at H'cup's statement.

"Rider H'cup, there are easier and less painful ways to kill yourself and your dragon. I've seen the results of blastrock on solid rock, I can't imagine what it would do to a dragon and his rider!"

H'cup set down his mug and looked Nicat in the eye.

"Masterminer Nicat, while I appreciate your reverence for dragonkind and your efforts to protect me, I assure you I have absolutely NO intention of killing myself or my dragon. Tannluth desperately wants to be a proper dragon and a big part of that is the ability to flame Thread. He can't do it with firestone, but I feel that he will be able to handle this blastrock!"

"What makes you say that?"

"I can't say, sir. It's just a feeling I have about him." H'cup couldn't explain that back on Earth, the fire Tannluth used to shoot out of his mouth actually DID explode!

Nicat set his mug on his desk and regarded the young rider before him. After reaching a decision, he nodded his head once.

"Very well, Rider H'cup, I'll give you some blastrock to see if it can help your dragon flame. But understand this, if anything happens to either one of you, I take no responsibility for the consequences! Do we have an understanding?"

H'cup stood, walked forward, and clasped the Masterminer's extended hand.

"I understand perfectly, Masterminer. Thank you for your assistance."

The pair left the office and Nicat called for a Journeyman miner.

"Sechel, take Rider H'cup to the blastrock shed. Give him a dozen fist-sized stones and a padded carisak to put them in. Then I want you to instruct him in the safe handling of blastrock. When you are done with that, please report back to me."

H'cup spoke up; "Um, Masterminer Nicat, can we make it two dozen? There's Thread this afternoon and I would like to use some during Fall."

Nicat raised an eyebrow at him, but nodded. "You heard the man Sechel, two dozen."

"Yes Masterminer. Right this way, Black Rider."

Sechel led the way to a small shed separate from all the other buildings of the Hold. On the way to the shed, H'cup had to duck under some string which was tied to the top of some stakes set in a circle around the building.

"Sechel, what is the string and stakes for?"

"It's to keep people at a safe distance from the shed."

"Safe distance?"

"In case it explodes."

H'cup stopped in his tracks and looked nervously at the building. Sechel saw him pause and looked back.

"Having second thoughts?"

H'cup swallowed and shook his head. "No, let's do this!"

Sechel laughed and said; "Relax, Rider H'cup. I've been doing this for five turns now. With the safety precautions we have set up, hardly anything happens anymore."

"HARDLY anything?"

"Oh, we still have accidents, but those only happen once we set the fuses alight. We'll have an accident every other turn when we have a Journeyman who doesn't recognize a running fuse!"

"What's a running fuse?"

"It's when someone lights the fuse and it sparks once or twice and goes out. Unfortunately, it's still burning in the core of the fuse. If the person who lit the fuse isn't aware of what happened, they will still be there trying to light the fuse when the charge goes off."

H'cup shook his head; "Yeah, I suppose that would totally ruin their day!"

Sechel laughed and said; "That's putting it mildly! Ah, here we are."

Opening the shed, Sechel took two padded carisaks from a hook on the wall. He then went to several cases stacked neatly in the center of the room and opened one of them. The inside of the case was lined with straw. Sechel pushed some of the straw to the side to expose the gray, lumpy rocks inside. Sechel put on a glove and had H'cup do the same. He then pulled twelve rocks from the case and placed them in one of the carisaks. He then opened the other one and placed another dozen stones carefully inside.

"We use the gloves to avoid getting sweat from our hands on the rocks. A little bit of moisture probably won't hurt, but we don't take chances."

"Masterminer Nicat said that water renders it inert."

"That's right, and it takes a good amount of water to do it, but we don't want to reduce the effectiveness of the blastrock. That's why we wear gloves when we handle it."

"He also said you don't want to expose it to fire."

Sechel raised an eyebrow. "I kind of wonder why I'm here. It seems he already told you everything!"

H'cup chuckled and said; "It doesn't hurt to hear it again."

Sechel chuckled as well and replied; "True, true. Just remember that it can't be exposed to ANY kind of fire. Even a small spark will set it off!"

H'cup gulped; "I'll remember that. Anything else I need to know?"

"Not really, just remember to close the container once you take one of the rocks out." Sechel closed the lids and handed the carisaks to H'cup.

H'cup shook Sechel's hand. "Thank you for all your help, Journeyman Sechel."

"It was my pleasure, Black Rider H'cup. Good luck."

"Thanks." H'cup turned away and called for Tannluth. The black dragon launched from the ridge and landed outside the boundary around the shed.

_:Did you find what you need?:_

"I did. Now we need to find an isolated place far from where anyone lives."

_:I think I know just the place. Are you ready to go?:_

"Yep, all strapped up. Let's fly!"

_:You got it, here we go!: _Tannluth launched and went _between_ two wingbeats later.

o0o0o0o

When Tannluth emerged from _between_, H'cup noticed the air was much warmer than it was at Crom Hold. He also noticed that the surrounding land was arid and lifeless.

"Tannluth, where are we?"

_:Keroon desert:_

"Keroon? I've never been here. Where did you get the coordinates for this jump?"

_:From Elonth, he's been here quite a few times:_

"And you remembered the coordinates he gave you?"

_:Of course. I've told you before H'cup, there's nothing wrong with MY memory!:_

H'cup shook his head and silently thought;_ "Well, there's probably something wrong with mine!"_ Looking around, he spotted an area that would serve their purposes well.

"Tannluth, land next to those rocks at the edge of the sand."

_:I see them. Those rocks would make good targets!:_

"Just what I was thinking!"

Tannluth chuckled as he backwinged and landed gently in the sand. H'cup unstrapped himself and slid to the ground. Opening one of the carisaks at his side, H'cup took out one of the gray rocks and hesitated before giving it to Tannluth.

"Buddy, are you absolutely sure you want to do this?"

_:Yes H'cup, I'm sure. Even if the worst happens, I would have died knowing I did all I could do to protect Pern, and I can't do that if I can't flame!:_

"But Tannluth, the queens don't flame! Their riders fight Thread by using flamethrowers!"

_:H'cup, I'm not a queen dragon! I'm meant to fight Thread by flaming. If I can't flame then I'll be a burden on the weyr:_

"You're not a burden to me!"

Tannluth rubbed his head on H'cup's chest as he purred.

_:I know that H'cup, but I have to do this:_

"Well, if you're going to do this, I'm going to be standing right next to you!"

_:Are you sure?:_

"Yep, what are friends for?"

Tannluth purred as he licked H'cup's cheek.

_:I love you, H'cup:_

"I love you too, Tannluth."

H'cup had his arms wrapped around the black dragon's neck as Tannluth laid his head across H'cup's back. The two friends broke their embrace and H'cup stood in front of his dragon.

"Let's try one of the smaller pieces first."

_:Okay: _

H'cup took out one of the slightly smaller rocks and tossed it into Tannluth's open mouth. The dragon chewed slowly, carefully, and thoroughly.

"Remember to think about your second stomach."

_:Got it. Move over to my side, H'cup. Here goes:_

H'cup moved to the dragon's side as he swallowed. Nothing happened at first, but then Tannluth's stomach rumbled ominously. His eyes started whirling rapidly as he opened his mouth to let out the rapidly expanding gasses. It made a sound that H'cup thought he would never hear again!

He thought; _"That sounds like a Night Fury!"_

Tannluth couldn't take it any more. He screamed; _:H'cup, GET DOWN!:_

H'cup dove to the sand and covered up his head. He caught a glimpse of Tannluth firing a blinding white ball of plasma at one of the taller rocks. The fireball streaked across the distance and detonated against the rock with a force that shook the ground. H'cup could hear fragments of shattered rock whizzing by. He started to look up but heard Tannluth shout again.

_:OH, SHIII...H'CUP, STAY DOWN!:_

Tannluth straddled him and covered him up with his wings. H'cup could feel his ears pop as the air pressure changed around them. He then felt a massive wave of heat rush over them. It was all finished within a second. Tannluth stood up with a grunt of pain.

"TANNLUTH! What's wrong? Are you okay, buddy?"

Tannluth didn't reply at first which only increased H'cup's anxiety. When he responded, H'cup let out the breath he was holding.

_:Yeah, I'm okay. I think I got singed a little bit:_

"Inside or outside?"

_:Outside. But H'cup, I flamed. I FLAMED!:_

Tannluth let out a loud, long roar to express his happiness. H'cup smiled for his friend and looked around at the damage his fireball caused. When he took it all in, he was shocked into silence.

_:Oh H'cup, I'm so very happy! Thank you for all that...:_ Tannluth stopped when he saw that H'cup wasn't responding.

_:H'cup?:_

H'cup finally turned and looked at his dragon.

_:You okay?:_

"Tannluth, did you actually look around and see what you did?"

_:What do you mean? I flamed, that's all that should...: _Tannluth fell silent and his jaw dropped open as he truly looked at the devastation wrought by his fireball.

"Yeah."

In front of them the desert was scorched in a circle almost five dragonlengths across. Fortunately, Tannluth and H'cup were at the outside edge of that circle. The tall rock that Tannluth initially targeted was nowhere to be seen. Instead, there was a huge crater that marked the detonation point. Tannluth was so shocked that almost a full minute passed before he spoke again.

_:I did all...THAT?:_

"Yeah buddy, you did."

_:WHOA!:_

"Yeah."

The two of them stood in silence for a few moments before Tannluth turned to H'cup with rapidly swirling blue eyes.

_:We have GOT to do that again!:_

"Absolutely!"

* * *

><p><em>AN: (1) I heard that in Todd McCaffrey's Pern books there was a different type of firestone that explodes when you get it wet. I thought that would be useless for my story because it would explode when it comes into contact with a dragon's saliva. So, I invented blastrock. I guess the closest thing to it on Earth would be dynamite. It was just intensified by Tannluth's stomach acids._

_(2) A dragonlength is the length of a green dragon or about 30 feet._

_**As always, thanks for reading and leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, and now Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**_


	22. Chapter 22 first fall

**Chapter 22 - First Fall**

* * *

><p><em>Hello everyone, it's another update!<em>

_Before I get to the story, I just want to thank all those who reviewed the last few chapters. **Slytherinsal, Tagesh, Pern Dreamer, Beastial Moon, JudyL068, BelleOfTheBoulevard, Apprentice Harper Kendra, iluvcats09, ZeroDivisionCaptain, Dygen Enteri, Saphroneth, Hamsterjellyman, Lt. Cmdr. Radner,** and **steampvnc1880**._

_To all of you I say; THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! I really do appreciate your reviews!_

_BTW, I'm surprised that no one caught the reference to the HTTYD movie I left in the last chapter. I have one in this one as well, but it's not as obvious._

_With that being said, on to the story._

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

* * *

><p>Before they used up some of the other pieces of blastrock, H'cup and Tannluth decided to fire from the air so they wouldn't get caught in another blast wave. They used up the rest of the blastrock in the first carisak, destroying stones, scorching large areas of sand, and having the time of their lives. Both of them could see that there was absolutely nothing wrong with Tannluth's aim, as he hit every single target that H'cup pointed out. They also realized that Tannluth's new ability had certain limitations, but H'cup was prepared to discuss them with Weyrlingmaster M'dar. By the time they were done, it was getting close to noon.<p>

"All right bud, let's go home."

_:You got it. Better button up your jacket, it's cold _between_:_

"Okay, thanks buddy."

_:You're welcome, here we go:_

Tannluth went _between_ and emerged over Telgar Weyr eight heartbeats later. Answering the challenge bugle from the watch dragon, he circled and landed in front of their weyr. Tannluth didn't stop and wait for H'cup to dismount as he trotted into the outer weyr.

"You're not going to stay outside?" H'cup asked as he unstrapped himself.

_:Later, perhaps. Right now I want numbweed!:_

H'cup could feel some of Tannluth's discomfort. To him it felt like a sunburn.

"Hang on a second, buddy. I'll be right back."

Going into the inner weyr, H'cup grabbed his jar of numbweed. Leaving his glove on and using a rag, he swabbed the salve on the areas that Tannluth complained about. The black dragon purred audibly in obvious relief. H'cup was surprised that there were relatively few areas that were slightly burned. It looked like Tannluth's scales protected most of his exposed hide. He didn't have much time to ponder his discovery as Weyrlingmaster M'dar strolled into his weyr.

"Rider H'cup, where have you been? I've been looking all over for you!"

"Practicing flaming Weyrlingmaster. We're here on time to fly Thread this afternoon."

"That's what I wanted to tell you, you're on ferrying duty."

"FERRYING duty? But Weyrlingmaster, Tannluth can flame now! Wait till you see it, it's..."

"RIDER H'CUP, you're assigned ferrying duty for this Fall! Now, when Fall is over and we're back in the Weyr, I'd be happy to see Tannluth's ability to flame. But right now you will stick to your assigned duties! Understood?"

H'cup ground his teeth but said; "Understood sir."

When M'dar left, H'cup finished applying the numbweed to Tannluth's hide. He put the jar back where it belonged and went back outside to sit against the black dragon's side.

"What are we going to do, buddy? I was hoping to impress everyone with your ability to flame, now we won't get the chance!"

Tannluth seemed unconcerned. He crooned low in his throat and laid his head across H'cup's lap.

_:H'cup, despite what was done to divert the Red Star, Thread is not going to end tomorrow. It will be around for at least another fifty turns! Don't worry, we'll have plenty of time to show what we can do: _

o0o0o0o

This particular Fall proved to be especially tough. Thread was falling through a fairly intense windstorm and injuries to both dragons and riders were both numerous and severe. Two dragonrider pairs were lost as well when they became so severely threadscored that they never re-emerged from _between. _The entire Weyr was busy over the next three days tending to everyone's injuries.

The fourth day after Fall, H'cup approached the Weyrlingmaster.

"Weyrlingmaster M'dar, can I speak with you for a moment?"

"What is it Rider H'cup?"

"Well, sir, you mentioned that you would check out Tannluth's ability to flame after the last Fall was over. I completely understand that you, me, and the rest of the Weyr were too busy over the last few days to take time to see if he can actually flame, but sir, the crisis is averted now. Do you think you can come with us and see Tannluth flame?"

M'dar put his hands on his hips and regarded the young rider before him. He then sighed and nodded.

"Very well, Rider H'cup. I'll meet you at the firing range in a candlemark. Faranth knows I can use some good news around here!" He then turned on his heel and left.

"Um, sir, maybe we should..." but H'cup was addressing empty air.

H'cup mentally spoke to his dragon; _"Well buddy, he'll be there, but I wasn't able to tell him that it would not be a good idea to practice your fire at the range."_

_:That's all right, H'cup. We can tell him when he gets there:_

H'cup and Tannluth flew outside to the range and waited for the Weyrlingmaster. A large shadow passed overhead and H'cup looked up to see Elonth circling in for a landing. M'dar dismounted and strode over to where H'cup was standing.

"Well, Rider H'cup, show me that Tannluth knows how to flame."

H'cup rubbed the back of his neck and shuffled his feet.

"Well, sir, this may not be a good place to do it."

"What do you mean? This is the perfect place to do it! It's far enough from the Weyr so that no one will have to smell the firestone and there are no permanent structures around."

"Well, the problem is that the grass is too close. With winter approaching, it's fairly dry and would easily catch fire. Maybe we could go somewhere where there's no grass?"

M'dar looked at the grass at both sides of the firing range. It was at least two dragonlengths away from any stray spark the dragons might generate.

"H'cup, are you telling me that Tannluth's fire can reach as far as the grass?"

H'cup nodded; "Further, sir."

M'dar's eyebrows shot up; "Well now, this I have to see! Where did you have in mind?"

"The same place we practiced before, Keroon."

"Very well, Rider H'cup. Mount up and lead the way."

H'cup was a little surprised that M'dar would let him take the lead in this flight. He climbed onto Tannluth's back and strapped himself in securely and then looked back to see if M'dar was ready. When M'dar nodded to him, H'cup raised his fist and dropped it in the signal to launch. The two dragons leaped from the ground and were airborne with two strokes of their wings. When Elonth received the coordinates from Tannluth, the two dragons disappeared _between_.

Emerging from _between_ over the Keroon desert, Tannluth circled to land with Elonth following. Both riders dismounted from their dragons and M'dar walked over to where H'cup was standing in front of Tannluth.

"All right, Rider H'cup. Show me what Tannluth can do."

"Yes sir" Turning to Tannluth and taking out a piece of blastrock, he asked; "You ready, buddy?"

_:Always: _

H'cup tossed a piece of the gray lumpy rock into Tannluth's open mouth and the dragon chewed carefully. Just before he swallowed, H'cup backed up and had M'dar do the same. Tannluth pointed his muzzle at a pyramid-shaped rock that was eight dragonlengths away.

M'dar said; "Does he think he's going to hit that rock this far away? The flame would dissippate before it gets there!"

"Don't worry sir, we've done this before." When Tannluth swallowed, H'cup shaded his eyes. "You may want to cover your eyes."

M'dar was about to ask what he meant, but was startled by a high-pitch screech. He turned toward the source of the sound and was looking directly at Tannluth when he fired a blinding white ball of plasma at the pyramid rock. M'dar was still seeing spots when he heard a terrific explosion. A second later, he felt an incredible pressure wave of displaced air that made him stagger back several feet. Blinking back tears, he waited for his vision to clear before he moved again. When the spots before his eyes disappeared, the first thing he saw was H'cup's concerned face.

"Are you all right, sir?"

"H'cup, what in the sweet name of Faranth was that?"

"That, sir, was Tannluth's fire. I DID try to warn you!"

"So you did. Well, now that I can see again, let me take a look..."

When he looked at the crater created from Tannluth's fireball, M'dar had the same reaction that H'cup and Tannluth had when they first used the blastrock. H'cup looked at Elonth and noticed with amusement that his eyes were whirling a bright yellow and he had the same shocked expression as his rider. It was a full minute before M'dar spoke again.

"Shards and shells, I've never seen anything like that! How in Faranth's name did Tannluth's fire get so powerful?"

"Well, sir, you remember that Tannluth couldn't flame with ordinary firestone?" M'dar nodded and H'cup continued; "Vailira and I researched the older records and found a reference to when dragons first started chewing firestone. It told of an incident where a dragon tried chewing a different kind of firestone and his flame was much more powerful. However, they quit using it because the dragon almost died."

"Almost died? How? Was the firestone poisonous to dragons?"

"No sir, it was that the firestone was very unstable. It's called blastrock, because instead of flaming, it explodes."

"EXPLODES? And you fed some of this to Tannluth? H'cup, you could have lost your dragon!"

Tannluth chose that moment to speak up; _:Actually Weyrlingmaster, I was the one who insisted on trying this blastrock. Back on Earth, my fire actually DID explode. Granted, this blastrock and my stomach acids make my flame much more powerful than anything I've ever fired before, but I desperately wanted to be able to breathe fire again:_

"But Tannluth, you could have died!"

Tannluth nodded; _:It was possible, but I was willing to risk my life and H'cup was willing to risk his in order to try this. It's done, and now we know it works:_

M'dar wasn't entirely happy, but he couldn't argue with Tannluth's logic. He sighed and nodded.

"All right, I can't really argue your point. By Faranth, you two are going to drive me into an early retirement!"

H'cup chuckled and said; "Sorry, sir."

M'dar chuckled himself and said; "Aw, shells, I can't really stay mad after what I just saw! Tell me, can he do that every time?"

"Yes sir, however, there are a few limitations."

"Limitations? Like what?"

"First off, the blastrock itself is very unstable. It can't get wet or else it becomes inert. And it absolutely, positively cannot be exposed to fire! If it does, it explodes."

M'dar gulped; "Yes, I could see that as being a Very Bad Thing. I'm sure you will take the proper precautions?"

"Yes sir. There are a few things that must be taken into consideration with Tannluth as well. He only needs one piece of rock to produce a fireball, but he only gets one shot with it. He also can't hold the gas in his stomach because the gas expands too rapidly. Once he swallows after he chews, he immediately has to fire. We tried having him hold the chewed rock in his mouth, but the longer it soaks in his saliva, the less effective his fire will be."

"Hmmm, I can see how that may prove to be an obstacle, but I'm sure you two can work something out. We're going to have a hell of a time figuring out where you belong in the formations!"

"Formations, sir? You're going to let us fly Thread?"

"I don't see why not. After all, you've proved you can flame and I would LOVE to see it in action against Thread! But first, I want to see you hit a moving target. Unfortunately, I didn't bring any weighted rope that simulates falling Thread. Do you have any ideas, H'cup?"

"Fortunately, there's something here in the desert that would suffice, sand snakes. If you would mount Elonth and follow us, we'll go see if we can rouse some up!"

The riders mounted their dragons and took to the air in search of sand snakes. Like their upland cousins, sand snakes were considered vermin on Pern, and very dangerous ones as well. The caravans that crossed the desert would lose one or two people a turn to the highly venomous bites of the reptiles.

They didn't have to fly far when Tannluth spotted one sunning itself in the open sand. Swiveling his head back around, he had H'cup give him a piece of blastrock before he passed low over the serpent. The snake saw the shadow of the dragon pass overhead. It panicked and took off across the sand, desperate to get to its burrow. Tannluth flipped around in midair, swallowed the chewed rock, and dove toward the fleeing snake. He opened his mouth, let out an ear-piercing screech of expanding gasses, and blasted a fireball directly at the snake. The unfortunate snake was instantly atomized, along with a good portion of sand and rocks immediately surrounding it.

M'dar and Elonth were hovering at a safe distance overhead. He nodded in satisfaction when he saw Tannluth's fireball score a direct hit on the snake. If the black dragon could hit a smaller, faster moving target like a sand snake, he should have no problems with Thread. M'dar gave the signal to return to Telgar Weyr which H'cup acknowledged.

Emerging from _between_, both Elonth and Tannluth returned the watch dragon's challenge bugle. After landing and dismounting from their dragons, M'dar walked over to where H'cup was standing.

"Rider H'cup, please come with me to my office."

"Yes sir."

H'cup had to run a few steps to catch up to the faster gait of the older man. M'dar noticed H'cup's slight stumble and immediately slowed down.

"H'cup, is your leg bothering you? I can slow my pace if it's giving you pain."

H'cup waved it off; "No Weyrlingmaster, my leg's not hurting. It's just that I've grown a little big for it and I haven't had time to make a new one yet."

"You should have made it so you can extend it as you grow bigger."

"That's what I did when I made this one, but I've reached the limits of its adjustments. When I have more time I'll make a new leg, but in the meantime I guess I'll just have to make a few more tweaks on this one."

"I'm sure you'll figure something out." Stepping into the office, M'dar went around to sit behind his desk while H'cup stood in front of it.

"H'cup, you're not here to be disciplined! Please, have a seat. Would you like some klah?"

H'cup visibly relaxed as he pulled up a chair close to the desk.

"Yes, please. Thank you, Weyrlingmaster."

M'dar nodded as he handed H'cup a mug of the steaming beverage. Taking his seat behind his desk, he sipped his klah and regarded the young rider seated before him.

"H'cup, I asked you in here because I'm in a bit of a quandary. I have absolutely no idea exactly how Tannluth would fit into the formations!"

"I thought of it myself, sir. If Tannluth fires off at a bunch of Thread, any other dragons close by will have to get out of the way or risk being singed in his fireball. It would throw the formations into chaos!"

"What do you think we should do?"

"Sir, I propose making him an independent. Let him start off a Fall by firing at the biggest masses of Thread and have the other dragons there to catch individual strands!"

M'dar tapped his desk for a few moments and then nodded.

"You know, I think that just might work! Thread is expected over Lemos in two days time, would you be able to get enough blastrock to last you throughout Fall?"

"Yes sir!"

"Very good. In two days, I want you to report to me in the morning when the wings are assembled. I will tell R'mart that we have a special surprise in store for this Threadfall!"

"Very good, sir."

"Dismissed, Rider H'cup."

H'cup stood, said; "Thank you, sir" then turned on his heel and left. He met Tannluth outside who came bounding up to him.

_:Well, how did it go?:_

"Keep it to yourself, but we get to fly Thread in two days!"

Tannluth started to bugle in joy, but H'cup grabbed his muzzle.

"Shhh, I said to keep it to yourself! How can you do that when you go bugling around the Weyr?"

_:But H'cup, I'm so very happy that we'll get to do what we were trained to do!:_

So am I buddy, but Weyrlingmaster M'dar wanted to keep this a surprise and he can't do THAT if you go bugling it around to all the dragons here!"

_:But why would he want to keep it a secret?:_

"It's the nature of your flame. I think it would be better to SHOW everyone rather than trying to DESCRIBE it."

Tannluth sighed; _:I suppose you're right:_

"Aw, cheer up buddy. In two days, we'll show everyone how good a Thread fighting team we can be!"

o0o0o0o

The day before Threadfall was due, H'cup made another trip to Crom Minehold. He wanted to personally thank Masterminer Nicat and Journeyman Sechel for their assistance and also to tell them that his experiment with blastrock worked. However, the Masterminer had other questions.

"You're welcome Black Rider. While I'm glad to hear that the two of you made it through all right, I don't think you came up here just to thank us."

"No, Masterminer Nicat, I did not. Even though I did not get to fly the last Threadfall, I used up most of the blastrock you gave me. I'm here to ask for more because I'm DEFINITELY flying in this one!"

Masterminer Nicat raised an eyebrow at him and said; "So, you and your dragon are here to use up all my stores of blastrock?"

"I-I'm sorry, Masterminer, but I know of no other way that my dragon..." H'cup stopped when the Masterminer raised his hand.

"Calm yourself, Rider H'cup, I was just joking. We have plenty of blastrock! In fact, if we didn't deliberately drown most of it, we would practically be buried in the stuff! I'd be more than happy to save some specifically for you and your special dragon!"

"Oh, thank you, Masterminer! Thank you very much!"

"Go with Journeyman Sechel here and he will supply you with whatever you need."

A candlemark later, H'cup was flying away from Crom Minehold with four carisaks filled with a dozen pieces of blastrock each.

The next morning, H'cup was strapped to Tannluth's back and was waiting on one of the upper ledges next to Elonth. M'dar looked over and noticed how nervous H'cup was.

"Don't worry, Rider H'cup, you'll do fine. Just remember to follow Tannluth's lead. Dragons have an instinct for these things, you know."

"Yes, Weyrlingmaster, I know. I have trusted and will continue to trust Tannluth with my life, but that doesn't stop me from being nervous!"

M'dar gave a short bark of laughter; "HA! H'cup, if someone tells me he's NOT nervous when going into Threadfall, I'll ground him for being a fool! We're all nervous and even a little scared, but we don't let our fear control us. Use your fear to keep you on edge and you'll have an excellent chance of coming through Fall unscathed!"

"I'll try to remember, Weyrlingmaster."

"Good. Ah, there's the signal from the Weyrleader. Follow my lead and stay close! Remember, don't go off by yourself until you hear my signal, got it?"

H'cup gulped nervously and nodded once. Seeing the Weyrleader drop his fist, all the dragons launched in waves from the ledges. Once every dragon had clear space above the Weyr, they received their coordinates from Branth and disappeared _between_.

Emerging over Lemos, all the dragons could see the gray cloud descending. Thread! The dragons roared in rage and turned their heads for their riders to give them firestone. While the dragons were chewing, M'dar gave H'cup the signal he was waiting for.

"Good luck, lad!" M'dar shouted across to him.

"Thank you, sir!" H'cup shouted back.

Leaning forward, H'cup mentally spoke to Tannluth; _"Okay buddy, let's show them what we've got!"_

Tannluth replied; _:You got it! Here we go!: _and pumped his wings harder for a burst of speed that put him well ahead of the rest of the formation. When they were closer to the leading edge of Threadfall, Tannluth turned his head back for a piece of blastrock. When H'cup gave him a piece, he noticed his dragon's eyes were barely orange.

_"Tannluth, you aren't feeling the anger the other dragons have towards Thread?"_

_:Not really. I'm feeling some of THEIR rage and it's affecting me a bit, but I'm not really feeling much of my own. Don't worry H'cup, I want to destroy this stuff because it threatens all life on Pern. I just can't get all that mad at it, that's all:_

H'cup thought it a bit strange, but as long as Tannluth was able to perform properly, there shouldn't be any concern. When he heard Tannluth quit chewing, he pointed out a sheet of Thread that might be a good target.

_"That looks like as good a target as any."_

_:I agree, you better shield your eyes:_

Tannluth swallowed the chewed blastrock and emitted a high-pitched screech that startled the rest of the dragons in formation behind them. He opened his mouth and fired at the approaching sheet of Thread. The fireball crossed the distance and passed through the sheet without exploding, burning several strands of Thread to dust. H'cup's, Tannluth's, and M'dar's jaws dropped in surprise.

_"What happened? Why didn't it explode?"_

_:I don't know H'cup, but we have a bigger problem right now! That fireball is still intact and is heading toward the ground!: _Tannluth turned his head and looked down. What he saw made him suddenly fold his wings and dive. _:Oh, no, it's heading toward those buildings! H'cup, we have to stop it!:_

_"How do we do that?"_

_:I don't know! You're a smart guy, figure something out! Meanwhile, I'm going to try to get in front of it!:_

_"You're not thinking of ramming it, are you?"_

_:If I absolutely have to, I will. H'cup, I fired it and I'm responsible for where it goes. I can't let it destroy a building full of innocent people!:_

_"Well, what are you wasting time talking for, fly harder!"_

Tannluth pumped his wings harder than he's ever done before and actually pulled ahead of the descending fireball. Meanwhile, H'cup's mind raced to come up with a plan. When he had one, his head shot up. It was crazy, but it might just work! Taking out another piece of blastrock, he got Tannluth's attention.

_"Hey Tannluth, start chewing on this piece of blastrock."_

_:What does that do to help us?:_

_"Come up under and just in front of the fireball. When you're ready, fire another one directly at it. The collision should detonate both of them!"_

_:I hope this works!:_

_"Trust me, buddy, it'll work!"_ H'cup silently said to himself; _"Hopefully."_

Tannluth was now in the path of the descending fireball and was ascending towards it. They had dropped a long way but were still high enough from the ground so that the shock wave from the combined blasts would dissipate before it caused too much damage on the ground. Tannluth swallowed, aimed carefully, and let loose with another fireball directly at the one coming down. He waited until the very last second to make sure both fireballs detonated before going _between_ to escape the shock wave.

Tannluth emerged from _between_ over Telgar Weyr. He then spoke to Elonth to get coordinates and went _between_ again and emerged next to the bronze dragon. Weyrlingmaster M'dar was livid!

"RIDER H'CUP! What the bloody shards just happened? Why didn't Tannluth's fireballs explode like they were supposed to? They were supposed to destroy THREAD, not almost destroy a building full of people!"

"I don't know, Weyrlingmaster! All of Tannluth's previous fireballs exploded, I don't know what happened with this one!"

Tannluth spoke to both of them; _:I think I know what happened:_

"Okay buddy, let's hear it."

_:In all the previous times I used my fire, it was against a solid target. I fired at either rocks or at targets on the ground and it exploded each and every time. The reason why it didn't explode is because the sheets of Thread don't have the mass needed to detonate the fireballs:_

H'cup threw up his hands; "GREAT! We've got the ultimate weapon against Thread and we can't even use it because it won't detonate!"

_:Not necessarily, H'cup. The last time I fired it was at a SHEET of Thread which was fairly thin and had no mass. What would happen if I fired it at a CLUMP?:_

H'cup's eyebrows went up; "You know buddy, that just might work! Weyrlingmaster, we'd like to try again!"

"Are you sure, Rider H'cup? Clumps are an extremely dangerous form of Thread! They can sometimes explode outward once you set fire to them!"

"I'm sure, Weyrlingmaster. We have to prove that this works!"

M'dar sighed and said; "Very well, I'll inform R'mart that you intend to try again and he will keep the wings clear."

"Thank you, Weyrlingmaster." Leaning forward, he told Tannluth; "Okay buddy, let's go!"

Tannluth winged away from the group and scanned the sky in front of them. Spotting one of the densest clumps, he turned towards it and craned his head back for a piece of blastrock. H'cup took out a piece and tossed it into his open mouth. Tannluth chewed the piece while tracking the clump on its descent. Instinctively calculating the trajectory, he pointed his muzzle to where the fireball would intercept the clump and swallowed. A few seconds later, a high-pitched screech was followed by a blinding white fireball. Tannluth's shot tracked straight toward the clump. This time, instead of passing through, it detonated with a terrific explosion. The expanding fireball not only completely destroyed the Thread in the clump, but ALL Thread within a sphere six dragonlengths across! This time, every single dragon and dragonrider saw exactly what he did and were stunned into silence. After a few moments a few dragonriders started to cheer, followed by the bugling of their dragons, followed by the cheering and bugling of EVERY dragon and rider in the air over Lemos!

"All right, Tannluth!"

"Way to go, Black Dragon!"

"WOO-HOO, Threadfall's gonna be easy now!"

The riders and dragons were called to order by Branth's bugle and R'mart's shout.

"ENOUGH! Tannluth cleared the way, but there's still Thread left! Let's get to work, boys!"

The wings worked in concert now, the big bronze and brown dragons sweeping the sky with their massive sheets of flame with the smaller blues and greens stationed below to catch the stray strand of Thread that made it through the first wall of defense. H'cup and Tannluth patrolled the edges, looking for clumps they can destroy with their fireballs. H'cup spotted a familiar looking blue dragon racing toward a large clump of Thread.

"T'yner? Is that T'yner? They're letting him fly Thread?"

The blue dragon got close to the clump and started flaming it. H'cup silently said; _"Go _between_, go _between_ NOW!"_

Unfortunately, the dragon and rider waited too long because the clump suddenly exploded outward, enveloping both dragon and rider in a squirming mass of Thread. H'cup could hear the blood-curdling scream of the pair being consumed by the wretched organism an instant before they disappeared _between_.

"T'YNER!" H'cup screamed. A moment later, he heard the heart-wrenching sound of dragons keening.

"NOOOO! T'YNER!" H'cup slumped over Tannluth's back in despair. Tannluth turned his head to look at him.

_:That wasn't Granth and his rider:_

H'cup's head shot up. "What?"

_:That wasn't Granth. The blue dragon that died was Nealth. I don't know the name of his rider. They were in the weyrling class before ours:_

"Where are T'yner and Granth?"

Tannluth pointed to the North with his muzzle; _:They're over that way, supplying riders with firestone:_

H'cup breathed audibly in relief. Even though he was sad to lose a dragon and rider, he was also glad that it wasn't his friend T'yner. Turning back to the task at hand, he scanned the sky for more clumps. Tannluth was about to fly toward another large clump when a smaller one that was set ablaze exploded outward. Tannluth tucked his wings close and spun out of the thickest part of it and found some clear air. He opened his wings and leveled off only to have H'cup duck as a single strand was right in front of him! It passed within inches of H'cup's back and got caught in Tannluth's dorsal ridge!

"Tannluth, go _between_ now! There's Thread on your back!"

_:Where? I don't feel...AAARRGGH!: _Tannluth went _between_ as he roared in pain when the strand rolled off his dorsal ridge and scored him on his flank. He re-emerged from _between_ angry and cursing.

_:Aaarrrhhh! Sharding, fardling, stinking lousy piece of #$%&*! OW! THAT HURT, DAMMIT! Oh, this stuff is going to PAY! H'cup, gimme some of that blastrock!:_

Tannluth had his head turned back with his mouth open. H'cup could see his eyes were bright blood-red and swirling rapidly in extreme anger, however, he was more concerned about the wound in Tannluth's flank.

"Tannluth, are you sure you're okay? We can go back to Telgar Weyr to get you checked out."

_:I'm okay, H'cup. Right now I just want to blast this stuff out of the sky!:_

"Listen, buddy, we can go to the Weyr..."

_:H'cup:_

"...and then we can come right back."

_:**H'cup**!:_

"It won't take that..."

_**:H'CUP!:**_

"What?"

_:BLASTROCK! NOW!:_

H'cup knew better than to argue, he's never SEEN his dragon this angry! Tossing in a piece of blastrock, Tannluth chewed as he angled his way to the large clump he saw before he was scored.

_:Everyone, get out of the way NOW!: _and fired at the clump, destroying it and all other thread around it.

Tannluth continued his rampage, incinerating Thread whenever they found clumps of it falling. The other dragons and riders were content to stay out of his way and flame the individual strands that Tannluth's massive fireballs didn't burn to cinders. Before they knew it, the fall passed over into airspace covered by High Reaches Weyr. R'mart gratefully passed it on and ordered all his wings back to Telgar Weyr. However, there was one dragon who wasn't too happy about that. Tannluth huffed and looked back at H'cup.

_:That's all, that's it? We just pass an imaginary line in the air and just quit? Thread is still falling!:_

"Buddy, other dragons and riders are taking over. Ones that haven't been fighting Fall for eight hours straight!"

_:Eight hours, is that all? Didn't seem like that long:_

"Yeah, bud, you kind of zoned out a little bit when you got scored!"

_:Oh, yeah, speaking of that, it kind of hurts right now!:_

"Well, let's get back to Telgar and get you fixed up!"

_:Hope they saved some numbweed for me!:_

* * *

><p><em>Well, that's all for this chapter. I hope you liked it!<em>

_**As always, thanks for reading and leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**_


	23. Chapter 23 armor

**Chapter 23 - Armor**

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><p><em>Hello everyone, it's another update!<em>

_Special thanks to **Slytherinsal** for allowing me to borrow an idea of hers for my story._

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

* * *

><p>Tannluth emerged from <em>between<em> over Telgar Weyr and once he returned the watch dragon's challenge, circled to land next to the dragon infirmary. Despite the loss of the blue dragon and his rider to Thread, injuries this Fall were relatively light so H'cup had no problems finding an open spot. When Tannluth landed, H'cup unstrapped himself and vaulted off his back. Grabbing the nearest pot of numbweed, he dipped in a rag and slathered a good bit of it over the threadscore in his dragon's flank. Tannluth purred audibly in relief.

_:Ahhhh, that feels SO much better! Thank you, H'cup:_

"You're welcome, bud. You know, looking at this score, you didn't get hit all that bad."

_:Not that bad? YOU try having something take a bite out of your flesh and see what it feels like!:_

"No thanks, buddy. It's bad enough that I can feel it through our link, I can imagine it's much worse for you!" H'cup then put some salve over Tannluth's open threadscore. Dragons tended to heal very rapidly, but their wounds still required protection to keep from getting infected. When H'cup finished applying the salve, he ran his hand up to the scales covering Tannluth's back.

"What I don't understand is why the Thread didn't score your flesh earlier."

_:Earlier? What do you mean?:_

"What I mean is that I know I saw Thread sticking to your dorsal ridge! And you said you couldn't feel it?"

_:No, I didn't feel a thing. That is, until it slid off my ridge and scored me!:_

"Hmm. Tannluth, crouch down a bit so I can climb on your back, I want to check something out."

Tannluth crouched down and helped H'cup climb onto his back by lifting him up with his foreleg. Crawling along Tannluth's back, he found the spot that was right above Tannluth's threadscore. He ran his hand along the hardened scales and found a slight indentation where the Thread started eating through the scales. H'cup quickly pulled his hand back in revulsion. He then traced a finger down from the ridge where the Thread attached itself to where the score mark started.

"Yep, I knew it. This is where the Thread got caught in one of your ridges. I can see that it ate away a little bit of your scales. What I don't understand is that it was attached to you for a few seconds. It was definitely live and active because it scored you instantly when it contacted your hide."

_:Then why didn't it score me when it first hit me?:_

"I'm not sure, buddy. Let me try something. Turn your head forward and don't look."

_:What are you doing?:_

"Trust me, buddy, I just want to test a little theory of mine."

Tannluth reluctantly turned his head forward and said; _:Okay:_

H'cup pulled out his belt knife and laid the flat of it on Tannluth's scales.

"Can you feel that?"

_:Not really. I do feel the pressure of something on my back:_

H'cup very lightly put the point of the knife on the center of one of the scales.

"How about now?"

_:Even less pressure than before. It's also a bit smaller:_

H'cup then tried to scrape a bit of the scale that was slightly scored. His knife simply skittered across the surface of the scale, it was that hard! He then tried something different. He chose a scale on one of Tannluth's ridges, placed the tip of his knife on one of them, and started applying pressure. He would pause after incrementally increasing the pressure on the end of the knife and each time Tannluth responded that he only felt pressure on the outside of his scales. It got to where H'cup was leaning his entire weight on his knife trying to see if it would penetrate Tannluth's scales! His knife barely made a dent.

"Tannluth, look back here, I want to show you something."

Tannluth craned his head back to look at H'cup. His eyes were whirling a bit faster when he saw the knife in his hand.

_:What are you doing with your knife H'cup?:_

"This is what I was using to test my theory, buddy."

_:You were using your KNIFE on me? Why were you doing that?:_

"Hey, I was being really careful! If it started penetrating your scales, I would have stopped immediately. As it was, I didn't even make a dent. Watch this!"

Before Tannluth could react, H'cup raised his knife and brought the point down hard and fast in the center of one of his largest scales. Tannluth for his part stayed perfectly still, but his eyes were whirling yellow with worry. Once he saw and felt that the knife didn't penetrate his scales, they returned to blue.

_:Hmmm, so it seems I have the same strength in my scales here on Pern as I did on Earth:_

"You knew a knife wouldn't penetrate your scales?"

_:I had a feeling it wouldn't, but I didn't really want to test it. During the war with the Vikings, it would take an axe or a heavy spear to penetrate our thick armor scales, a knife would have no effect:_

"So, my theory is correct, you do have armor protection here on Pern!:

_:So it would seem:_

"And not only does this armor protect you from weapons, it also protects you from Thread!"

_:But H'cup, I still got scored!:_

"Yes, you did, but it was in a non-vital area. If that Thread was traveling at high velocity instead of falling normally and you DIDN'T have scales, it could have eaten through to your spinal cord! You're not totally immune to Thread, but you have enough protection to keep you from getting crippled or killed."

_:So why didn't the Thread eat through my scales?:_

"I think it's from the sand you consumed to harden your scales. Thread only eats organic material, trees, grass, flesh, bones. When it falls on bare rock or sand, it starves and dies. Since it can't consume inorganic sand, that sand in your scales protected you."

_:Hmm, that's very interesting to know. It's too bad the other dragons don't have the benefit of armored scales:_

H'cup's head came up upon hearing his dragon's words.

"You know something, buddy? You may have just given me an idea!"

o0o0o0o

Once Tannluth's injury healed enough for him to be cleared for flight, H'cup had him go _between_ to the Smithcrafthall. When they arrived, H'cup went inside to see Mastersmith Fandarel. The huge Smith enveloped H'cup in a crushing bear hug as his greeting.

"H'cup! Good to see you, lad! How is Tannluth and your weyrmate Vailira?"

H'cup choked out; "Air!"

"Oh, sorry about that, lad. Sometimes I don't even know my own strength!"

H'cup coughed and breathed deeply a few times. Once he had his breath back, he smiled at the Mastersmith.

"It's good to see you too, Mastersmith. Vailira is fine and Tannluth is bigger than ever. He's flaming now and Weyrlingmaster M'dar let us fly Fall a few days ago."

"That's good to hear. Did you make it through Fall unscathed?"

"Not exactly Master, Tannluth got a small score on his flank. However, what happened before he got scored gave me an idea and I wanted to run it by you."

H'cup went on to tell the Mastersmith about how Tannluth's scales protected him from live Thread. He explained to the Mastersmith his theory that Tannluth's consumption of sand to harden his scales is the thing that gave his scales their resistance to Thread. He also went on to explain what he did back at the Weyr to test the strength of his scales. He then pulled out an old scale that Tannluth shed earlier to show the Mastersmith.

"I thought about using some of Tannluth's old scales as armor for the other dragons, but once Tannluth sheds them, they're pretty much useless. Watch this." H'cup held the edge of the scale in his gloved hand and brought it down hard and fast on one of the workbenches. The dried scale shattered like glass.

"Hmm, and I take it that the scales on the live dragon are not as brittle?"

"No, Master. In fact, they're almost as strong as steel. I tried my best to penetrate one of them with my belt knife and I could barely dent it!"

"Well, we do use sand to make glass. It seems that once the scales are shed, they lose their flexible strength and revert back to glass."

"Yes, Master. Do you have any ideas on what materials we may use to make armor for the other dragons and riders?"

Fandarel stood back and scratched his chin for a few moments. He then shook his head and looked at H'cup.

"It's too bad Aivas deactivated itself. It would probably be able to tell us what we need to know to make something lightweight and strong."

H'cup blinked; "Aivas deactivated itself? When did this happen?"

"Oh, I'm sorry H'cup, I thought you knew. Aivas deactivated itself the same day Masterharper Robinton died."

"Why would it do that?"

"I'm not exactly sure, but I think it wanted us to continue living and thinking for ourselves the way the Ancients intended. Aivas left a poem in that regard, would you like to hear it?"

"Certainly."

The Mastersmith cleared his throat and began;

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.

A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to reap;

A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;

A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

A time to gain, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace."

When the Mastersmith finished, he bowed his head and had tears in his eyes. H'cup had tears in his eyes as well. He has never heard anything so beautiful and sad at the same time.

"That's was very beautiful, Master. Did Masterharper Robinton write that?"

"No one knows, H'cup, but I would like to think so. Even if Aivas was the one who wrote it, those were probably the last words that Robinton read. I memorized the words to honor the Masterharper."

"What do think the words mean?"

"I have the impression that Aivas or Robinton left us those words to remind all of Pern that even though they are gone, their purpose on Pern has been fulfilled. Everything and everyone has a purpose H'cup, even you and your special dragon. Perhaps this is one of those things you are meant to fulfill?"

"Perhaps. Do you have any ideas we might be able to use?"

"I think we can come up with something."

H'cup spent every free moment he had during the next three sevendays at the Smithcrafthall testing new designs and materials. He originally tried ceramics, but even though they were strong, Thread-resistant, and lightweight, they tended to shatter when struck against something hard. Steel proved to be too heavy even when beaten into the thinnest sheets. He would have dearly loved to make it out of the plastics that he saw down in Landing, but those were beyond the manufacturing means of Pern. He finally decided on bronze as being readily available, easily molded, and strong enough to retain its shape. Using massive rollers at the Smithcrafthall, they were able to press it out into thin enough sheets to be fairly light in weight. H'cup cut out a breastplate similar to ones he used to repair back in Berk, but at least these didn't have to stop axes, spears, or dragon claws and teeth, only Thread. Once he was satisfied with the shape, he held it up to the light.

_"And now to test it"_ he thought.

o0o0o0o

H'cup and Tannluth were flying into another Fall leading the charge with Tannluth's massive fireballs. They would explode the biggest clumps of Thread and leave the individual strands to the other dragons. When Fall was nearly over, H'cup turned around and retrieved the breastplate and pole he tied to Tannluth's back. Placing it across his lap, he leaned forward and talked to his dragon.

"Okay buddy, I'm ready. Try to find us an individual strand."

Tannluth's eyes were still swirling red, but he looked back and nodded. Scanning the sky ahead of them, he flicked his wings to make a slight turn to their left.

_:I see one ahead, H'cup:_

"Got it. Okay buddy, it's up to you. Bring us alongside so I can catch it."

Tannluth nodded again and concentrated on his flying. H'cup turned the pole around so that the breastplate was off to his left. As Tannluth neared the strand of Thread, H'cup could hear and feel the dragon's growls beneath him.

"Easy, buddy."

_:Let's get this over with! I don't like being so near the live stuff!:_

"It will all be over in a few seconds, just keep your course."

Tannluth huffed but maintained his even and level flight. H'cup extended the pole and brought the breastplate under the Thread. He caught it easily and swished it around inside the breastplate. Just looking at it turned his stomach, but H'cup had to make sure the armor would hold up. After about twenty seconds, even Tannluth has had quite enough.

_:All right, that's it! Quit playing with it and get rid of it! You know the armor is going to hold up against Thread, so dump it!:_

"All right, all right, I'll get rid of it. Turn to your right and I'll dump it over that lake over there, the water will drown it."

_:Flame it, drown it, it doesn't matter as long as it dies!:_

H'cup chuckled; "You really are a dragon of Pern now, aren't you, buddy?"

_:Yep:_

Once they were over the lake, H'cup turned the breastplate over and allowed the Thread to fall out. They watched it all the way on its descent and could even hear it sizzle as it hit the water. Tannluth looked down and nodded in satisfaction. H'cup leaned forward and stroked his neck.

"You did a great job today, Tannluth. Let's go back to the Weyr for a nice bath in the lake to wash some of this ash off. Sound good?"

_:Sounds great!:_

"Okay buddy, take us home" and the pair disappeared _between._

o0o0o0o

During the next two sevendays, H'cup spent his time at the Smithcrafthall perfecting his armor. He figured he didn't need full body coverage, just head, back, front, shoulders, upper arms, forearms, and thighs. He already had a breastplate, so he made a back plate that when strapped together outside his flying jacket protected his torso. He had to design a new helmet, but he used an old one as a template. He extended the back of it so it would cover the back of his neck and made it so the sides stuck out a little longer. Instead of relying on flying goggles, he fitted a piece of glass to a hinged frame so the helmet fully enclosed the head. For the other pieces of armor he simply riveted them to one of his old flying jackets and pants. Trying it all on, he found that it wasn't nearly as heavy as he first thought.

"How does it feel?" the Mastersmith asked.

"Not bad. It's not as heavy as I thought it would be. It's a bit different seeing out of this helmet."

"Is it affecting your vision?"

"My peripheral vision is a little bit affected, but we rely on the dragons to see Thread anyway."

"So, what will you do now?"

"Now, we sell the idea to Weyrleader R'mart."

o0o0o0o

"You want to do WHAT?"

"I want to make Thread-proof armor for the dragons and riders, Weyrleader."

"WHY would be a better question. WHY do you want to make this armor when the dragons can simply go _between_ and freeze it off?"

"Was Nealth able to go _between_ in time to save himself, Weyrleader?"

"What does Nealth and R'zin have to do with this?"

"Two months ago, Nealth and his rider got a little too close to a flaming clump of Thread that exploded. I heard both the dragon and rider scream as live Thread tore into them. The ability to go _between_ certainly didn't help them!"

R'mart scowled and raised his voice; "You're impertinent, Black Rider!"

H'cup calmly replied; "With all due respect Weyrleader, I'm not. This armor has the potential to save lives and reduce injuries to dragons and riders during Threadfall. It would be impertinent if I decided to just keep it to myself without sharing it with anyone."

R'mart leaned back in his chair and tapped his desk. He spent a few moments studying the young rider standing before him. He then closed his eyes, shook his head and sighed.

"I've been fighting Thread most of my adult life, H'cup. I Impressed Branth when I was not much older than you are now. The two of us rose through the ranks, from Weyrling, to Wingsecond, to Wingleader, and finally to Weyrleader. In all that time, I NEVER got used to hearing the screams of dragons and riders scored by Thread. I hate it, I absolutely HATE it. But the alternative is much, much worse. Do we endure the injuries and deaths to dragons and riders protecting Pern, or do we sit back in the relative safety of our Weyr and watch Thread consume all life on the planet? That question is fairly easy to answer, we do our duty to Pern as dragonmen!"

"I've been guilty of sticking to tradition. Tradition can sometimes be a good thing in that you can set certain expectations of behavior. Tradition can also be bad in that it doesn't allow us to adapt to new conditions and situations. We don't want to try something new because it goes against 'tradition'. Well, I'm going to take a step here by trying something new and going against tradition. Show me this armor of yours."

H'cup very excitedly opened up a bag he brought into the Weyrleader's office. He put on the riding pants with the thigh plates riveted to the leather. He then donned his jacket with the plates on the shoulders and arms. Then he buckled the breast and back plates over his jacket. Finally, he donned the helmet and lowered the visor over his face. During the time H'cup was putting on his armor, R'mart sat silently behind his desk watching him. Now he stood and walked around his desk to stand in front of H'cup to get a closer look.

"I notice it doesn't cover your entire body."

"No sir, it doesn't. It would be too heavy and cumbersome that way. I just wanted to cover the vital areas and areas that are most exposed to Thread. If a rider is hit anywhere else, it would hurt like hell but at least it won't cripple or kill him."

"Where did you get this idea, H'cup?"

"From my dragon, sir. During the Fall when Nealth was killed, a strand of Thread got caught on Tannluth's dorsal ridge. It stayed there for at least three seconds but it didn't score him. He DID get scored when the strand rolled off his ridge and slid down his flank. The Thread was definitely live and active because it scored him instantly the moment it touched his hide. Once we got back to the Weyr and I took care of his injuries, I examined Tannluth's scales and even tested them with my belt knife. I couldn't even make a scratch or dent in them no matter how much pressure I applied! I figured the sand Tannluth consumed to harden his scales gave the scales a natural resistance to Thread. I decided to take the problem to the Mastersmith and we came up with the idea for this armor."

"So you're only going to outfit riders with this armor?"

"Oh, no sir, I had plans to fabricate armor for the dragons as well. Here, let me show you."

H'cup pulled his sketch pad out of the bag and flipped over a few pages. When he found the right pages, he turned the book so R'mart could see. The Weyrleader spent a few minutes going over the designs, nodding at a few and raising his eyebrow at others.

"These aren't the final designs Weyrleader, just rough sketches. It's enough to give me ideas."

"Hmmm, I notice you haven't made any armor for your own dragon."

"No sir, I haven't. Tannluth already has natural body armor. Anything else on him will just be redundant."

R'mart spent another minute going over the designs in the book, then nodded and closed it. He turned to look at H'cup.

"You realize there will be some resistance to this idea of yours?"

"Yes sir, I do. That's why I think at first it would be a good idea if you made wearing the armor voluntary. Also, it would be good if other riders see me wearing this armor during Fall. Even though I want to avoid physical contact with it completely, it would be even better if they see that Thread won't affect the armor or Tannluth's scales."

R'mart gave an involuntary shudder; "It's best to try and avoid that if you possibly can."

"I agree, sir."

R'mart nodded once and returned to his seat.

"Very well, Rider H'cup. You have my permission to wear this new armor of yours during Fall four days from now. You also have my permission to fabricate armor for any rider or dragon asking for it, but ONLY if they ask for it. Understand?"

"Perfectly, sir."

"Dismissed, Black Rider."

"Thank you, sir."

o0o0o0o

Four days later, H'cup came out of his weyr riding Tannluth and wearing his new armor. Every head turned to look at him with some riders hooting in derision but most looking at him in curiosity. He ignored the catcalls and simply took his place in formation. S'nar came up alongside and looked him over.

"Hey, H'cup. What's that you've got on?"

"Body armor."

Ch'ser came up on the other side.

"Body armor? Are you preparing for war?"

H'cup looked straight at him. "Yes, Ch'ser, I am. What do you think we're doing flying out to meet Thread? This is a war we're fighting and if I can make something to protect me and other riders so we can keep fighting, by Faranth I'll do it!"

Ch'ser put his hands up; "Hey, relax, I'm on your side, I was just curious. Does it really work protecting you from Thread?"

"This is the first time I've worn it during Fall, so I don't really know how well it would protect me. But I did test it and Thread doesn't affect it in the least!"

S'nar nodded and said; "Well, it's too late for this Fall, but once we get back I'd like to see about getting some."

H'cup looked at him; "You know, I also have armor designs for the dragons as well."

S'nar replied; "Nermoth doesn't need it, he can go _between_ and freeze it off."

"_Between_ didn't help Nealth and R'zin."

"Who?"

"The blue dragon and rider killed when a clump of Thread exploded while they were flaming it."

Both bronze riders fell silent at H'cup's words. Their attention was diverted by Branth's warning bugle. All riders looked toward the Weyrleader for the signal to ascend. When R'mart raised his fist and dropped it, all the dragons of Telgar took off from their ledges. Once clear of the Weyr bowl, they received their coordinates from Branth and disappeared _between_.

o0o0o0o

That particular Fall was relatively tame, as were the next two subsequent Falls. Very few of the other riders were impressed with H'cup's new armor, but he wore it to each Fall. S'nar and Ch'ser were the only riders flying Fall that ordered any body armor, and even so, they didn't want the helmet or armor for their dragons. H'cup sighed and thought to himself; _"Well, it's a start."_

Tannluth interrupted his thoughts when he said; _:Don't worry H'cup, they'll come around:_

"Do you know something I don't, buddy?"

_:Not really, it's just a feeling. These last few Falls have been fairly easy. If we get one during a windstorm again, I'm afraid a lot of riders will be wishing for armor!:_

"This is one time when I hope your feelings are wrong, bud."

_:I hope I'm wrong as well:_

In the meantime, H'cup was working on a target drone for Tannluth's fireballs. He started at first with small models. Using wooden strips glued into a shape of a dragon, he covered the whole thing with thin sheets of paper. Climbing up one of the ledges, he tried launching it but it plunged straight into the ground. He built another and tested the balance of the model before launching it. It still didn't fly. He asked Tannluth to drop him off on one of the higher ledges and then had the dragon hover in the air right next to him. H'cup studied the shape of Tannluth's wing while he hovered. He noticed that the upper part of the wing was arched up while the underside was flat. He made some notes and designed another model with the wing thick in the front and tapering to a point in the rear. This time it glided perfectly. He then built a larger one and covered it in the thinnest copper strips he could find for Thread resistance. H'cup then asked T'yner if Granth would tow the drone behind him. The drone glided beautifully. H'cup then had T'yner tell Granth to ascend well away from the Weyr. Once they were a safe distance away, he told T'yner to cut the rope and move off. He then gave Tannluth a piece of blastrock. Once Tannluth chewed and swallowed, he shot a fireball at the drone and it exploded, completely destroying it.

"YAA-HOO! It worked! It actually worked!"

_:But H'cup, I destroyed your drone!:_

"That's the idea, buddy!"

_:Huh?:_

"This is what we're going to use if we can't find clumps during Threadfall! We fly one of these into a sheet of Thread, you fire your fireball at it, BOOM, no more Thread!"

_:We're going to need a lot of them to last throughout a Fall:_

"Now that I know how to build them, I can write plans so anyone can build them. The weyrlings, candidates, or other people in the Weyr can put them together. Blue or green dragons can take them up one at a time as needed and can cut them loose so they could glide in. You shoot your fireball at the drone and have the dragon go back to the Weyr for another one."

Tannluth's eyes were whirling with excitement; _:You know, that just might work!:_

"Well now, I'm glad my plan has your approval!"

Tannluth snorted with amusement as he descended to land.

The next morning started out early with riders preparing themselves and their dragons for Threadfall. All of the dragons and riders were quiet because they knew this one was going to be hard. They've heard reports that this Fall was passing through one of the dreaded windstorms. Still, the riders went through their preparations with an air of quiet determination. When all the riders were assembled, R'mart gave the signal to launch and all dragons went _between_ once they received coordinates from Branth.

When they emerged over the mountains of Crom, all the dragons and riders let out a collective groan. Thread was falling in total chaos! None of it was in sheets or clumps and seemed to come from every direction at once! Dragons simply roared and turned their heads back for firestone. H'cup had Tannluth relay to the blue riders carrying drones to launch them toward the Fall. Two blue dragons angled toward the leading edge and one rider cut his tow line. The drone glided into the mass of Thread and Tannluth shot a fireball at it, destroying the drone and a good mass of Thread surrounding it. The other blue rider angled toward the leading edge and was preoccupied with cutting the rope. He didn't see a mass of Thread right in front of him!

H'cup screamed; "LOOK OUT!"

The rope parted as the rider looked up. H'cup heard a short shout of either surprise or pain before the dragon disappeared _between_. He waited a few seconds and breathed a sigh of relief when he didn't hear the dragons keening. Tannluth destroyed the second drone along with a huge mass of Thread with another fireball.

The rest of the Fall went downhill from there. There were a lot of screams of pain from both dragons and riders as Thread hit them from all directions. Most of them would wink _between_, only to reappear moments later with pieces of frozen Thread flaking off their hides. The ones with minor scoring returned to the fight while the more seriously injured went to the Weyr for treatment. Two dragons and riders never re-emerged from _between _after being severely scored.

Not even Tannluth was completely immune. Most of the time he would twist in midair to avoid Thread, but there were several times he had to go _between_ to avoid a mass of Thread that he simply could not fly around. On two occasions he got too close and got scored on his wings. He went _between _instantly, so the scores were shallow.

H'cup never got scored, but if it wasn't for his armor he would have been hurt very badly. He was ducking and turning with Tannluth to avoid bits of Thread flying around and had a small piece smack him right in the center of his visor! He turned his head so the wind would wipe it off, but the episode shook him up badly. He had Tannluth go _between_ to clear air out in front of leading edge so that he could stop shaking. Once clear of the Fall, H'cup lifted his visor and took a shaky breath. Tannluth turned his head and looked at him.

_:H'cup, are you all right?:_

"Y-Yeah buddy, I-I'm okay. I had a piece of Thread smack me right in the face! I-If I wasn't wearing my helmet..."

_:Well, just be glad that you WERE wearing your helmet! Come on, pull yourself together, they need us back there!:_

H'cup took another deep breath to steady himself, lowered his visor, and had Tannluth go _between_ back into the fight.

o0o0o0o

Three long hours later, the Fall passed over territory covered by High Reaches and R'mart ordered all the wings back to Telgar. They emerged from _between_ to a cacophony of cries, groans, and screams from injured dragons and humans. Those with minor injuries were relegated to the side while the healers were concentrating on the more serious, life-threatening cases. Fortunately, there was pots of numbweed and salve so the less injured riders could service both themselves and their dragons as needed.

H'cup directed Tannluth to one of these areas. He treated Tannluth's injuries and remained in the area to see if he could help anyone else. He stayed busy the rest of that day and into a good portion of the night. It was fairly late when he dragged himself back to his weyr and collapsed on the couch completely exhausted. Fortunately, he had already removed most of his armor, so all Vailira had to take off was his wherhide jacket, pants, boots, and leg. She covered him with a sheet, kissed him, and left him to sleep off his exhaustion.

H'cup woke up the next morning with sore muscles and was ravenous as a baby dragon! He strapped on his leg, pulled on his pants and boots, threw a tunic over his head, and went out to the dining cavern to get something to eat. He got a big bowl of porridge and a mug of klah, sat down and started to dig in. Halfway through his meal other riders from his weyrling class started to file in. They took their bowls and sat close to H'cup. Ch'ser had a haunted look in his eyes.

H'cup asked; "Hey Ch'ser, you okay?"

Ch'ser blinked and turned to H'cup; "Oh, hi H'cup. Yeah, I'm okay. I guess I'm just shocked at how bad it can be!"

"Did you get scored?"

"I didn't, but Hurth took a hit on his foreleg and neck. It wasn't nearly as bad as some of the other injuries I saw at the infirmary!"

"Tell me about it! Did we lose anyone we know?"

Ch'ser nodded sadly; "Blue rider L'fen and dragon Folth."

"Aw, shards, not L'fen! I kind of liked him!"

"Nearly everyone liked L'fen. He will be missed."

There was a somber mood at the table when S'nar came up with his tray.

"Did everyone hear about L'fen?" S'nar looked around at the nods and sad faces. He started eating but stopped and looked directly at H'cup.

H'cup asked him; "What?"

"I just wanted to thank you, H'cup."

"What for?"

"That armor you made for me saved my life. I had a piece of Thread hit me directly in the chest. If the armor wasn't there it would have killed me!"

H'cup smiled and said; "You're welcome, S'nar."

S'nar still had a serious look on his face.

"I reconsidered what you said about the armor, and I want the full treatment for both me and Nermoth. If Thread can come that close to taking me out, I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I didn't do everything I could to protect my dragon!"

Ch'ser chimed in; "Count me in as well."

A blue rider that H'cup didn't know said; "I heard about this armor and after what I've seen yesterday I'll be willing to try it."

Most of the riders at H'cup's table were nodding in agreement.

H'cup mentally spoke to his dragon; _"Well, buddy, it seems they like the idea of armor."_

Tannluth sounded smug; _:I told you they'd come around:_

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><p><em>That's it, another chapter done!<em>

_**As always, thanks for reading and leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, and now Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**_


	24. Chapter 24 armorcraft

**Chapter 24 - Armorcraft**

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><p><em>Hello everyone, it's another update!<em>

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p>"How do you plan on fitting armor to the dragons?" S'nar asked.<p>

"Well, since it would be closer to where it would be made, we will go to the Smithcrafthall and you can help me make a plaster cast of Nermoth's back, face, neck, and chest. That way I'll have his dimensions and you won't have to wait there while I make it. You also may have to bring him back from time to time to see if I got the fit of it correct" H'cup answered.

"You can't use Tannluth for those measurements?"

H'cup shook his head. "Won't work. His head is shaped totally different and his scales make his body shape different as well. Besides, if I do fit him with armor, he won't be able to tell me if it's uncomfortable or not."

S'nar nodded; "Good point. Would tomorrow be okay?"

"Let's make it the day after tomorrow. I'm still a bit sore after all the hard work we did yesterday."

S'nar nodded and he agreed to meet in the Weyr bowl the day after tomorrow.

Once they checked with Weyrleader R'mart that they didn't have any extra duties that day, H'cup and S'nar took their dragons _between_ to the Smithcrafthall. When they arrived, H'cup met with Mastersmith Fandarel and told him what he planned to do. The Mastersmith approved of his plan and assigned a dozen apprentices to help. Mixing a big tub of plaster and slathering a lot of oil on Nermoth's hide, they got to work slapping gobs of plaster to the bronze dragon. Nermoth stood perfectly still, but H'cup could tell he was highly amused at the antics of the apprentices around him by looking at his blue whirling eyes. When the plaster dried, H'cup carefully peeled it away from the dragon's hide. Now that he had a reverse mold of Nermoth's dimensions, he filled them with potter's clay in order to get a true mold once the plaster came off. Thanking Nermoth for his patience, H'cup explained that it would be a few days before anything was ready and that they should return to Telgar. Nermoth bowed his head in acknowledgement, took off, and went _between _back to Telgar Weyr.

After the clay was fired to harden it, H'cup now had something to tell if the armor's dimensions were correct. He found that compared to the rest of the dragon's armor, fabricating the breastplate and neck armor would be relatively easy. At first he thought he would have to design a whole new harness system to accommodate it, but he found that it wasn't necessary. All he had to do is design a series of clips built into the armor plate and it fastened over the top of the harness. That way it not only protected the dragon, but also kept Thread from eating through the leather harness. The leather of the harnesses were treated with skybroom resin to give it resistance to Thread, but it didn't make it completely Thread-proof and accidents were known to happen. H'cup designed the neck armor with overlapping plates that had a single hinge point at the top. That way the dragon had freedom of movement in the head and neck while still protecting the vulnerable neck area from getting scored.

With the fitting of the neck and breast plates out of the way, H'cup had more time to tackle the problem of how to get the face and back plates to stay attached to the dragon. The original design of the face plate had it going over the headknobs and using a strap under the chin to hold it in place. While the headknobs held the back part of the faceplate securely, H'cup had to come up with another idea to keep the front part from coming off. He couldn't use the chin strap because it prevented the dragon from opening his mouth fully when he breathed fire. He thought of using small tabs hooked into the dragon's nostrils, but Nermoth rejected that idea because he said it was uncomfortable. He then made two metal tabs close to the front of the faceplate that went down and hooked over the dragon's teeth. When Nermoth tried it on he said it felt strange, but since it didn't cause him any discomfort they decided to stick to that design.

Now that the problem of the face plate was taken care of, H'cup could now tackle the problem of attaching the back plates. So far, every idea he came up with was rejected as unfeasible. He couldn't just strap them on because the wings were in the way. He couldn't use adhesives because that would tear the dragon's hide when they were removed. Flustered, he returned to his weyr at Telgar.

"Vailira, I'm stuck. I can't figure it out. Maybe we could just go without the back armor."

"That wouldn't be a good idea, H'cup. You said it yourself, if it wasn't for Tannluth's scales on his back, he could have been crippled or killed when Thread hit him there. Why design armor for dragons and only go halfway? Don't worry, you'll think of something."

Vailira kissed him and turned toward the mirror in their room. Pushing her hair to the side, she took off her earrings and placed them on the dresser. H'cup was looking at her when she did this and his eyes shot wide open.

"You know, I think I've got it!"

The next morning, H'cup went to S'nar with his plan for attaching the back plates.

"You want to do WHAT?"

"It's similar to someone getting their ears pierced. The dorsal ridges are just hide and cartilage. We make a small hole at the base of each ridge and put a pin through that will hold the armor in place."

"So you want me to mutilate my dragon just so we can fit him with armor? No, thank you!"

"S'nar, how much more mutilated do you think Nermoth will be if he got hit in the back and DIDN'T have armor? Look at the adult dragons around the Weyr and show me one that doesn't have scars fighting Thread. Our dragons are going to get Threadscored whether we want them to or not. We might as well do all we can to keep the damage to a minimum."

S'nar spent a few long moments looking at H'cup deciding what to do. His eyes went unfocused as he talked it over with Nermoth. It didn't take much to convince him because he nodded once and said that Nermoth agreed with H'cup's proposal.

That afternoon they flew down to the Smithcrafthall and went to the shed where the armor was stored. H'cup picked out the plate that fitted over Nermoth's first ridge and climbed on his back. He dabbed some numbweed on both sides of the ridge where the hole was going to be, fitted the plate over the ridge, and with a hand drill started drilling into the metal of the armor. S'nar stood at Nermoth's head petting his eye ridges and talking to him. When the drill came through the other side of the plate, H'cup pulled out the drill, removed the plate, and got a red-hot iron rod that an apprentice passed up to him. He then inserted it into the hole, cauterizing it and sealing it permanently. He then went down Nermoth's back and repeated the process on each one of his dorsal ridges. He then went back and applied salve to each one of the holes in order to keep them from becoming infected.

Three days later when all of Nermoth's piercings were fully healed, S'nar and Nermoth flew down to the Smithcrafthall and tried all the armor on for the first time. H'cup even redesigned a new helmet for S'nar and himself that was lighter in weight and had curved glass for better visibility. With both dragon and rider outfitted, H'cup asked them both how it felt.

"I like this helmet a bit more than my regular flying helmet and goggles. It's only a little bit heavier, but I've got better visibility. Nermoth is still getting used to the faceplate, but he says the rest of the armor is not heavy at all and doesn't impede his movements one bit. He says he can't even feel the pins through his dorsal ridges! I guess you were right about that H'cup."

"Hey, I'm just glad we found something that works!"

"Well, I thank you and Nermoth thanks you as well for this armor. Hopefully you'll find a way to make it a bit faster because it took you two sevendays to make this set!"

"The process will go a bit faster now, the two of you were just the first. Now that I know what to do, fitting other dragons should be easier!"

H'cup indeed found that whenever other dragons and riders wanted armor, the process was much more streamlined. There were still a few riders who balked at the thought of deliberately drilling holes into their dragon, but after they saw that it didn't cause Nermoth any discomfort and were barely noticeable, they went ahead and did it. H'cup made a few more tweaks to the faceplate and the other dragons said it was much more comfortable.

Each time a rider brought his dragon to the Smithcrafthall to be fitted for armor, H'cup kept the molds he made of each dragon in a large shed. After a few months, the shed had to be expanded to accommodate all the molds he had made. He noticed that some molds were redundant as most dragons had similar proportions, the only differences being size. He built shelves in the shed and started categorizing the molds based on size. When a dragon came in to be outfitted with armor, he would measure the dragon first to see if a mold was available. Most of the time it was, but for the times there wasn't one on hand, he would cast a new mold and stock that one for the future.

During the time H'cup was making armor for the dragons and riders, he was having apprentice and Journeyman smiths helping him. He had to add on three extra additions to the storage shed to house all the workshops for fabricating armor. Six months after H'cup finished the armor for S'nar and Nermoth, Mastersmith Fandarel approached H'cup with a proposal.

"H'cup, I've talked with the other Masters and they're all impressed with what you've done here. I put forth the idea and they all agreed that we should start a new craft with this armor fabrication of yours."

"That's fantastic, Mastersmith! Who will be the Master of this new craft?"

"Why, you will, H'cup. There's no one else more qualified for the job."

H'cup sputtered; "M-ME? You want to promote ME to Master? B-but I can't be Master! I have my duties as a dragonrider!"

Fandarel held up a hand. "Calm yourself H'cup, we know all about your duties. No one else is more qualified for the job NOW, but we're sure you will be able to train someone up to take over your position as Armormaster."

"Armormaster, I like the sound of that!"

"We thought you would. So, do we have a deal?"

H'cup looked at him in shock.

"What did you just say?"

"I said, do we have a deal?"

H'cup continued to stare at the Mastersmith.

"H'cup, is there something wrong?"

H'cup shook his head and blinked his eyes.

"No, Mastersmith, nothing is wrong. It's just that you said something that reminded me of someone."

"Forgive my curiosity, but may I ask who?"

"My father."

"Oh. Oh, I'm sorry, H'cup, I didn't mean to cause offense."

"No offense taken, Master. My father used to ask if we had a deal whenever he tried getting me to do something I didn't want to do. However, that's not the case here." H'cup stood tall and looked the Mastersmith in the eye.

"I accept your proposal and will become Armormaster of the new Armorcrafthall!"

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><p><em>A shorter chapter than most others, but another one done!<em>

_**As always, thanks for reading and leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**_


	25. Chapter 25 time off

**Chapter 25 - Time Off**

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><p><em>Hello everyone, it's another update.<em>

_Sorry it took so long, but I had a bit of writer's block. This chapter was originally going to be about Tannluth's mating flight, but I realized that there was a whole turn (year) interval that was missing. I didn't have any ideas for a while, but I came up with something that I think sounds pretty good. H'cup has been doing nothing but working at the Smithcrafthall and the Weyr (with a few side trips to Landing) and has never had any time off. I figure he's due for a vacation. Enjoy._

_**WOO-HOO! 100+ REVIEWS!** Thank you so very much each and every one of you who have left reviews for this story!_

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p>When word spread around the Smithcrafthall of a new craft opening up, there were a lot of applicants amongst the apprentices and Journeymen. When it was confirmed that the new craft was formed in order to fabricate armor for dragons and riders, there was a veritable flood of applicants! It seemed EVERYONE wanted the chance to be close to the magnificent protectors of Pern. As a consequence, H'cup had the choice of some of the best talent the Smithcrafthall had to offer. He chose six Journeymen, one of which was his old friend Jencis, and eighteen apprentices. There would be more coming as demand for armor increased, but for now the numbers would be sufficient. He called for an assembly in the newly built Armorcrafthall. Once all the apprentices and Journeymen were assembled, H'cup stood before them and looked them over.<p>

"I'm not one to make speeches, so I'll be brief. This is a very new craft. In fact, six months ago it didn't even exist. What I'm trying to say is that there is quite a bit of room for new ideas. If you have an idea, please don't hesitate to bring it to me or to one of the Journeymen you see before you. Even if it's a bad idea, it may lead to something useful. That's all I have. Does anyone have any questions?" When no one spoke up, H'cup continued; "No questions? Very well. Apprentices, you are dismissed. Journeymen, please stay behind for a few moments."

When all the apprentices dispersed, H'cup turned to the Journeymen.

"I'm fairly new at this, so I'm going to count a lot on the six of you. First off, does anyone see any problems with the new apprentices?"

Most of them shook their heads, but a young Journeyman he knew as Sendoral nodded his head.

"Do you know of any problems Sendoral?"

"Not any real problems, Armormaster. It's just that a lot of them are young and have visions of riding on dragons. We're going to have our hands full keeping their minds on their tasks!"

"I agree. The ones who applied for this craft must WANT to be near dragons. That is something that is taken into consideration when dragons go on Search for candidates. I have a feeling that we're going to lose a lot of apprentices to the Weyr. If a dragon who's getting fitted for armor happens to like one of our apprentices and thinks he will be a good candidate for a Hatching, then by all means they should be encouraged to go. Of course, the choice of whether or not they go is up to them. However, we must keep them focused on what they are doing while they are doing it. Any other questions?" Jencis spoke up.

"Have you thought of casting the molds out of something other than clay, Armormaster?"

"Yes, at first I did, but I didn't really have the time to do it. I just went with something that was quick, cheap, and readily available."

"Well, now that there's more apprentices coming into the craft, it might be a good idea to replace the clay molds with something a little more durable. One accident would wipe out several months worth of work!"

"Very good point, Jencis. That could be one of the first tasks we assign to our new apprentices. You wanted something to keep them busy, Sendoral? This could be just the thing!"

Sendoral nodded and said; "I'll get on it right away, Armormaster."

H'cup nodded; "Very good, Sendoral." He looked at the other Journeymen. "Is there anything else?" When no one spoke up, H'cup nodded again. "Thank you for your attention, everyone. You are dismissed. Jencis, please stay behind for a moment."

When all the other Journeymen had left, H'cup rubbed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger.

"Are you all right, Armormaster?"

H'cup smiled and said; "Yes Jencis, I'm all right, I'm just a little tired. Could you do me a favor?"

"Certainly."

"We've been friends since we were Journeymen. When we're alone, could you please call me H'cup?"

Jencis grinned and nodded. "Sure thing, H'cup. Now, what was it that you wanted to discuss with me?"

H'cup took a breath before starting. "Right at this time my duties at the Weyr allow me some time to devote to this craft. However, that may change in the future. It has been my intention all along to train someone else to eventually take over my position as Armormaster and I can think of no one more qualified for the job than you, Jencis."

Jencis stood there for a few moments with his mouth hanging open. When he got over his initial shock, he started stuttering.

"Y-you want m-me to be Armormaster?"

"Sure, why not? You're one of the most level-headed Journeymen in the Smithcrafthall. I'm sure you would keep your even-handedness in running the Armorcraft."

"I d-don't know what to say."

"Say 'Yes'."

Jencis smiled as he extended his hand. "Yes."

H'cup smiled back as he grasped his hand and shook it. "Excellent. Obviously, we can't confirm you as Armormaster just yet, we have to get the craft up and running first."

"Obviously."

"In the meantime, I'm going to go back to Telgar and get some rest. Can you handle things here?"

"You can count on me, Armormast...I mean, H'cup."

H'cup grinned at him. "Thank you, Jencis."

H'cup left the group of buildings that comprised the new Armorcrafthall and walked across the courtyard to where Tannluth was lounging in the sun. The black dragon noticed the way his rider was dragging his feet. When H'cup reached his side, Tannluth craned his head around and gently nudged H'cup in the side.

_:Are you all right, H'cup?:_

H'cup patted Tannluth's snout. "Yeah buddy, I'm all right. I'm just a bit tired, that's all. Let's get back to Telgar where I can get some sleep."

Tannluth cocked his head to the side as he regarded his lifemate, but nodded once and crouched down so that H'cup could climb on. When the straps were secured, Tannluth leaped into the air and went _between_ to Telgar Weyr.

Re-emerging from _between_ over Telgar, Tannluth returned the watch dragon's challenge bugle and descended to their weyr. Tannluth touched down and walked into the outer weyr before H'cup dismounted so he wouldn't have to walk so far. H'cup unstrapped himself, slid down Tannluth's side, and laid a hand on his neck.

"Thanks, buddy."

_:Anytime:_

H'cup wearily dragged himself into the inner weyr, sat down on the edge of the bed, took off his flying jacket, pants, boots, and leg, and collapsed into the sleeping furs. He was sound asleep a few moments later. Tannluth poked his head into the inner weyr to check on him and nodded his head when he saw that H'cup was finally getting some sleep.

_:Sleep well, my friend:_

Tannluth went back into the outer weyr and settled onto the dragon couch to take a nap. When he felt something poke into his hide, he looked down and sighed in dismay.

_:Shards, he forgot to take off my riding harness. Oh well, I'll just wait for Vailira to come back:_

Tannluth made himself as comfortable as he could and settled his head on his forepaws to wait. Fortunately, he didn't have to wait long as he felt the presence of Chrysolth and Vailira approaching their weyr. His head came up when Vailira walked into the outer weyr.

"Hello Tannluth. What are you and H'cup doing back here in Telgar? I wasn't expecting you until later tonight."

_:Hello Vailira, hello Chrysolth. H'cup and I came back because he needed to rest. He's in the inner weyr sleeping right now:_

Vailira looked in on H'cup and saw that he was sleeping soundly. She nodded once and drew the curtain across the entrance to the bedroom. When she came back out, Tannluth spoke to her again.

_:Vailira, can you do me a favor?:_

"Sure Tannluth, what can I do for you?"

_:H'cup was very tired when he came back and he forgot to remove my riding harness. Could you please take it off? It would make resting much more comfortable:_

Vailira frowned; "That's not like H'cup at all to forget something like that. Stand up and I'll take it off of you."

_:Thank you very much. You know, I'm glad H'cup is asleep right now. That way I can talk to you privately:_

"Oh? What do you want to talk about?"

_:I'm worried about him:_

Vailira stopped unbuckling the straps and looked Tannluth in the eye.

"Why are you worried about H'cup? Is there something wrong?"

_:Have you noticed how tired H'cup has been lately? At first he was ecstatic that his idea of making armor for dragons and riders led to the start of a new Crafthall and that he was in charge of it. I could see that he was very happy planning everything and building it from nothing. But that's ALL he's been doing with his free time these past few months. Every free moment that he has when he's not fighting Thread is spent down at the Armorcrafthall. And he doesn't just sit around and let others do the work. He works HARD. I have to almost drag him away from there every day so that he will get some sleep:_

Vailira nodded as she resumed taking off Tannluth's harness. "Yes, I've noticed how tired he's been lately. But I realize that he's trying to get everything running well. Once everything is in place, he should have more time to himself."

_:I'm not too sure if it will be wise to wait that long, Vailira. He's not just tired, he's weary. I've seen how hard he will push himself when he sets a goal. Back on Earth when he was building an artificial tail for me so I could fly again, we would crash from time to time. It wouldn't hurt me, but I could tell H'cup was hurt a number of times. He would smile, stretch his bruised and sore muscles, and mount up for another try. I had to be the one to stop our practice sessions before he hurt himself too badly. I have a feeling that he will keep going with this until he collapses. He needs some time away from the Weyr, from the Armorcrafthall, from everything:_

"Even from me?"

_:Oh, no, no, no, not from you. You're the only other stable influence in his life apart from myself. That's why I wanted to talk to you. It's going to take the two of us to help him out of the rut he's in right now:_

Vailira nodded as she pulled the last part of the harness off of Tannluth's back and smiled as she coiled it up for storage.

"I think I know just what to do."

o0o0o0o

It took three days of planning, meetings, and messages, but Vailira was now sure that everything was in place to carry out her plan. Now all she had to do was wait for the right time. Threadfall was due in two days and wouldn't fall over Telgar's territory for two more sevendays after that. Perfect. She sent out the requisite messages to let everyone know her timetable.

Threadfall turned out to be relatively light with only three minor injuries to some young dragons. The next day, H'cup was getting ready to go down to the Armorcrafthall to see how things were progressing. When he finished dressing, Heimdall flew to H'cup's shoulder from his perch on top of the closet. H'cup smiled and scratched his headknob and Heimdall purred in obvious pleasure.

"Hey there, little buddy. I haven't seen you since yesterday. Been keeping out of trouble?"

Heimdall chirped happily and shared images of things he had seen with H'cup. As always, these images were confusing while being seen through the faceted eyes of the fire lizard, but it made him happy when he was able to share things with his human friend. H'cup laughed and walked into the outer weyr. He was a bit surprised to see that not only was Tannluth all harnessed up, but Chrysolth was also wearing her flight harness as well. H'cup's eyebrows went up as he noticed that both dragons had large carisaks strapped to their harnesses.

"What's all this?"

Vailira turned around to look at him.

"Oh, good morning H'cup. You're just in time."

"In time for what?"

"We're going on vacation."

"Vacation? I can't go on vacation! I have a crafthall to run!"

"H'cup, that's all been taken care of."

"Taken care of? What do you mean by that?"

"What I mean is that Journeyman Jencis and Mastersmith Fandarel will be handling things with the Armorcrafthall for the next few days. I've also checked with Weyrleader R'mart and he approved a leave of absence for you and Tannluth."

H'cup's eyes narrowed; "And you set this up?"

_:Don't be cross with Vailira, H'cup. It was actually MY idea to get you away from the Armorcrafthall and the Weyr for a little while:_

H'cup turned and looked at his dragon.

"Tannluth, you know how important it is to craft armor for the dragons and riders of Pern!"

_:Yes, I do. I also know that it's important to keep the Armormaster and Black Dragon Rider in top form, physically and mentally. H'cup, I love you and I'm worried about you. You've been pushing yourself too hard these past few months and need some time for yourself. Please, if you won't do this for yourself, do it for me?:_

H'cup tried reasoning with them again.

"Look, it's a very important time right now and I've almost got everything set up the way I want. Give me three more sevendays and I'll take some time off."

Vailira shook her head; "No, H'cup, this can't wait for three sevendays. Look at you, even though you slept through the night, you look like you've been awake for days! You're pushing yourself too hard and you need to take a break. I've spoken with Jencis and the Mastersmith and they assure me they will take care of everything personally. If an emergency happens that requires your personal attention, you're only a fire lizard message and a quick dragonflight away."

H'cup sighed and shook his head.

"Neither one of you have left me much choice, have you?"

Vailira and Tannluth answered simultaneously; "Nope."

H'cup's eyes went wide as he shook his head and chuckled a few times.

"Now you're picking up my habits, Vailira." He threw up his hands. "Alright, I give up. Where are we going?"

Vailira squealed with joy and hugged him as Tannluth craned his head down to lick his cheek.

"All right, all right, that's enough! Now, where are we going?"

Vailira turned away from him and walked toward Chrysolth.

"Sorry, that's a surprise. You'll find out when we get there."

"Tannluth?"

_:Uh-uh, no way. I'm not telling. I've been sworn to secrecy:_

H'cup chuckled as he climbed onto Tannluth's back and strapped himself on. Heimdall sunk his claws into the pads on H'cup's jacket and wrapped his tail around his neck. Tannluth followed Chrysolth outside their weyr and both dragons took to the air as soon as they had clear space to spread their wings. When they cleared the rim of the Weyr, Tannluth received coordinates of their destination from Chrysolth and both dragons transferred _between_.

When they reached their destination, H'cup was surprised at how warm the air was. He looked down at the crystal clear ocean water and the lovely cove they were angling toward. The dragons flared out over the water and touched down on the sandy beach. Vailira quickly dismounted and started unloading the carisaks strapped to Chrysolth's harness. She looked over and noticed that H'cup was still strapped to Tannluth's back.

"Well, what are you waiting for? We're here."

"Just where is 'here'?"

"What? You don't recognize it? I thought you've been to the Southern continent a number of times."

"Yes, to Landing, but I've never seen this place before."

"Well, let me welcome you to Cove Hold."

H'cup looked around as he unstrapped himself and slid down Tannluth's side.

"Cove Hold, huh? So, you've been here before?"

"Yep. When I first thought of a vacation, I asked Falina what would be a good place and she suggested this. Chrysolth got the coordinates from Rennsith and we came down to check it out. What do you think?"

H'cup had to squint to look at the water. He noticed the sun was much brighter here.

"I think I'm going to get sunburned."

"Don't worry, I've planned ahead for that. I've got some lotion that you rub onto your skin that helps protect it from getting burned. I've added oil to it so it stays on a bit longer if you go in the water. It washes off if you stay in for a long time, so we still have to be careful to not stay out in the sun too long."

"Where did you get this lotion?"

"I learned how to make it from the desert plants while I was still with my uncle's caravan."

"You've thought of everything, haven't you?"

Vailira smiled; "I tried to. So, do you approve?"

H'cup laughed, hugged her, and kissed her on the forehead.

"Sure, I approve. So, what's first on the agenda?"

"No real agenda. Let's get the dragons unloaded and their harnesses removed so they can relax as well."

H'cup and Vailira unloaded both dragons and removed their harnesses. As soon as Tannluth's was removed, he took off in a spray of sand.

"Hey! Watch it, you crazy dragon!"

_:Sorry about that. It's just that it's been SOOO long since I've been swimming in the ocean:_

Tannluth flew out over the water, winged up a little higher, rolled sideways, and tucked in his wings as he performed a perfect dive into the ocean. Vailira and H'cup were applauding his maneuver as he surfaced and shook the water off his head.

_:Thank you, thank you very much:_

Heimdall chirped in delight as he launched himself from H'cup's shoulder and performed nearly the same maneuver Tannluth did a few moments before. When he surfaced to H'cup's and Vailira's cheers, he paddled over to Tannluth, climbed on top of his head, and shook the water from his bronze hide. Tannluth rumbled in amusement at the antics of the little fire lizard.

_:Enjoy the view?:_

Heimdall chirped in the affirmative.

_:Well, hang on and take a breath, it's about to get more interesting!:_

Heimdall took a breath and hooked his claws on the edge of Tannluth's scales as the black dragon reared back and dove to the depths of the cove. Tannluth surfaced shortly and had Heimdall chittering in delight.

_:You like that? Here we go again!:_

As Tannluth and Heimdall dove again, Chrysolth started walking toward the water and looked back at Vailira.

_:I'm going swimming too. Are you coming in, Vailira?:_

"You go on, love. I'll be with you shortly."

Chrysolth turned back to the water, but instead of flying out to deeper water and diving in as Tannluth had done, she waded in until the water was up to her chest and started to paddle around. She seemed to be perfectly content to stay in the shallows.

Vailira and H'cup picked up their belongings and walked towards the group of buildings situated at the other end of the beach. When they got closer, a tall, well-tanned older gentleman came out of the main building and walked up to Vailira.

"Greetings. Welcome to Cove Hold. My name is D'ram and I'm one of the administrators of this lovely little slice of paradise. You must be Vailira. Lytol told me of your intention to visit. Unfortunately, he had to be called away to family business in Ruatha or else he would be the one greeting you now. How may I be of service, Queenrider?"

Vailira smiled and blushed as D'ram bowed low at the waist and kissed the back of her hand.

"Thank you, D'ram. We're planning on staying for at least a few days and need a place to keep our things."

"Certainly. If you would follow me, I'll show you where the two of you can stay." Looking at H'cup's shoulder knots, D'ram remarked; "I've heard from Tiroth that there was a black dragon in Telgar. However, I never thought that I'd meet his rider."

H'cup extended his hand and clasped D'ram's forearm the way dragonriders do.

"H'cup, rider of black dragon Tannluth. Pleasure to meet you, sir."

"The pleasure's mine H'cup, and cut the 'sir' crap. It's D'ram, if you please."

H'cup smiled and nodded; "Very well, D'ram. Thank you for accommodating us."

D'ram waved a hand; "Nonsense, we get dragonriders coming here on vacation all the time! It's no trouble at all." D'ram led them to one of the sleeping chambers attached to the main building.

"Here we are. Now, mealtimes are pretty informal around here. There's a cooking pit around the back side of the building that's going all throughout the day. What's cooking depends on what's been brought in. Most of the times it's fish, but we get quite a few herdbeasts as well. Just let Laisha know what you want beforehand and she'll feed you well. I ought to know!" he added as he patted his belly.

Vailira laughed and said; "Thank you again, D'ram. We'll let you know if we need anything." D'ram nodded at then both and left. Vailira turned to H'cup and raised an eyebrow.

"Well? What do you have to say now?"

H'cup kissed Vailira on the cheek and laughed.

"Sorry about being so gloomy before. Thanks for setting all this up. I think I'm going to enjoy myself."

Vailira punched him lightly in the arm.

"That's the spirit! Now, let's get changed so we can go swimming with our dragons."

Once H'cup and Vailira changed into some spare underlinen, slathered on some sun protection lotion, and H'cup strapped on his wooden leg, the two of them went outside and down to the water's edge where their dragons were still playing. Wading out into chest-deep water, the dragons sensed their lifemates were near and joined them in the shallows.

_:H'cup, this place is AMAZING! The water is so clear and warm. And the FISH! There are SO many, of all different sizes and colors! I tried catching some, but I couldn't get close enough. I'm either out of practice or I've gotten so big that I can't move through the water as fast as I used to:_

H'cup patted him on the neck as he smiled at his friend's exuberance.

"Glad to see you're enjoying yourself, buddy. We'll be here for a few days, maybe you'll have better luck next time."

_:Yeah, I'll get those fish eventually. Oh look, here comes something now:_

H'cup turned to see what Tannluth was looking at. He noticed a single dolphin at the cove's boundary that was heading straight towards them.

"You don't mean that dolphin, do you?"

_:Dolphins? Is that what you call them?:_

"Yes. What did you call them?"

_:Warmfish:_

"Warmfish? Why did you call them that?"

_:Because their blood was warmer than any other fish in the ocean:_

"How did you know their blood was warm? You didn't eat them, did you?"

Tannluth nodded; _:Back on Earth, I did. They are very tasty:_

H'cup's eyes went wide as he quietly spoke to his dragon.

"Tannluth, NO, you can't eat them!"

_:Why not, they're just like every other fish in the ocean. What's so special about them?:_

"Because they're not fish, they're mammals and the ones here on Pern are intelligent. They've been enhanced with the same process that was used on the dragons long ago when the Ancients first started fighting Thread. They're intelligent and sentient, it would be like eating a human or another dragon!"

Tannluth actually recoiled in revulsion at that thought.

_:Ugh! Thank you very much for that mental picture, rider of mine!:_

H'cup chuckled; "You're welcome. Behave yourself, okay?"

_:Don't worry, I will:_

H'cup turned to Vailira. "Do you think it's a male or female?"

"Male."

"How do you know?"

"When I was in the caravan, we would trade with fishermen from Tillek and they would tell us stories about dolphins. They told us that the females always stayed in groups but the males would sometimes travel alone. I don't see any other dolphins surfacing, so this one must be a male."

"You sure?"

"Positive."

The group continued to watch the dolphin as he swam quickly to where they were standing in the shallow water. He came right up to H'cup, stopped, and lifted his head out of the water. His voice was punctuated by high-pitched squeaks and clicks, but he could be clearly understood.

"Hel-lo hu-mans, hel-lo drag-ons. En-joy-ing the wa-ter?"

H'cup and Vailira looked at each other with shock and surprise on their faces. It was one thing to know that dolphins could speak, but it was another thing entirely to be in the presence of one and actually hear it. H'cup cleared his throat and spoke up.

"Um, hello. Yes, we're enjoying the water very much. How are you today?"

"Arch is fine. Had blood-fish scraped few days ago. Much bet-ter now."

H'cup looked at Vailira and mouthed the word 'bloodfish'. Vailira just shrugged her shoulders.

"Um, I'm glad you're feeling better. You said 'Arch' when you referred to yourself. Is that your name?"

"Yes, Arch is my name."

"Hello Arch. My name is H'cup, this is Vailira, the black dragon is Tannluth, and the gold dragon is Chrysolth."

Arch turned to each of them as he repeated each of their names.

"H-cup, Vail-i-ra, Tann-luth, Chry-solth."

"Yes, that's right, Arch."

Arch gave a loud squeal of joy and took off toward deeper water. He did a series of jumps and spins in the air to the enjoyment of both humans and dragons who were watching him from the shallows. H'cup turned to Tannluth and noticed his blue whirling eyes were fixated on the dolphin and that he was trembling slightly.

"Tannluth? What is it? What's wrong?"

_:Nothing is wrong H'cup. It's just that something happened that I didn't expect:_

"Well, are you going to keep me in suspense or are you going to let me know what's got you excited?"

_:I can feel him:_

"Him? You mean Arch? How can you feel him? He never touched you."

_:I mean I can feel his mind:_

"Really? Well, what does that mean?"

_:It means that I might be able to talk to him:_

H'cup's jaw dropped in surprise, this definitely was unexpected!

"Well, when he comes back, why don't you try and talk to him?"

Tannluth simply nodded and watched Arch as the dolphin swam toward them. When he stopped in the shallows, Tannluth looked directly at him and reached out carefully with his mind.

_:Hello, Arch. Can you hear me?:_

The effect was immediate as Arch squealed with joy.

"Arch hear you! Arch hear you! Arch hear drag-on speak-ing! SQUEEEE!"

He immediately took off out to deeper water and did a tail-walk across the glassy surface of the cove. Tannluth rumbled in amusement at the dolphin's antics.

_:Excitable, isn't he?:_

H'cup nodded; "Very. At this rate, it will take all day to have a conversation."

_:Yep, but at least we have a good show while we wait:_

They didn't have to wait long as Arch completed another flip and arrowed back to where Tannluth was standing. This time he addressed the dragon directly.

"This is great day! No drag-on ever speak to dol-phin be-fore!"

_:That's very strange. I wonder why no other dragon has ever tried talking to your kind before:_

"Do not know. Drag-ons only speak through rid-ers be-fore. You first to speak to dol-phin. You diff-erent from oth-er drag-ons."

_:Yes, Arch, I am different. I am the only black dragon on Pern:_

Arch decided to change the subject.

"Tann-luth like fish?"

_:Yes, Arch, I like fish very much. However, I can't quite seem to be able to catch them:_

Arch said; "Wait here" and took off toward deeper water.

H'cup shook his head and looked at Vailira.

"Where is he headed off to now?"

"I'm not sure. Oh, wait, look at that!"

H'cup looked to where Vailira was pointing and saw a veritable _explosion_ of fish! The calm surface of the cove seemed to tear open as fish of all different sizes and colors leaped from the water in all different directions at once. It was over in a few moments and the water settled back to its calm state with only a few ripples marking the site of the event. H'cup turned back to Vailira.

"What do you think caused that?"

"I'm pretty sure Arch caused it. He asked Tannluth if he liked fish and then took off. A few moments go by and fish are going crazy. I think they were trying to get away from him."

"Well, I wonder if he had any luck."

"We'll know in a second, because here he comes."

Everyone watched in amazement as Arch swam up to Tannluth holding an absolutely HUGE fish that was still struggling in his jaws. The dolphin couldn't even lift his head out of the water as he turned to his side in front of the black dragon. Arch kept looking down at the fish and then back up at Tannluth. It took a few moments before the dragon got the hint.

_:Is that for me?:_

Arch nodded.

Tannluth bent down, grasped the head of the fish in his jaws, and then flipped it into the air. He snapped the fish cleanly in half, swallowing the head first and then catching and swallowing the tail. He licked his lips to clean the rest of the blood and oil the fish left behind.

_:Ahhh, that was very, VERY tasty! Thank you very much, Arch:_

"You are wel-come, Tann-luth."

_:You know, I wasn't really hungry, but I appreciate the snack all the same:_

"Arch wan-ted to do some-thing nice for you since you were first to speak to dol-phins."

_:Well, thank you again, Arch. And now I'd like to do something nice for you:_

"What you do?"

Tannluth didn't reply, he just closed his eyes and started squeezing his diaphragm. When he started making retching noises, H'cup cringed in revulsion.

"Aww no, not again!"

Vailira asked him; "What? What's he doing?"

"You may want to turn away, Vailira."

Vailira didn't heed his warning and watched as Tannluth regurgitated the tail section of the fish he just ate along with a small portion of his stomach contents. He held it in his teeth and swished the piece through the water a few times to wash it off. Vailira swallowed the bile rising in her throat and turned away.

"Ugh, I did NOT need to see that!"

"I warned you!"

"So you did. I'll remember to listen next time!"

H'cup laughed as Tannluth held the piece of fish in front of Arch.

"What is this? What you do-ing? That is YOUR fish."

_:Arch, where I come from, dragons look at food as life. When our pups are too young to hunt for themselves, we share our food with them and so we call it 'sharing life'. We also do this when someone does something nice for us. When you gave me that fish, you 'shared life' with me and now I want to 'share life' with you:_

"This some-thing im-por-tant?"

_:It is. I only do this for my special friends:_

"You want to be friends with Arch?"

_:Yes, I do:_

"Okay."

Arch lifted his head higher out of the water and gently took the piece of fish Tannluth held between his teeth. Arch swallowed it in one gulp and swam forward to touch his snout to Tannluth's scaled nose.

"Arch glad to be Tann-luth's friend."

_:I'm glad too, Arch:_

Arch backed away and slid into the water. When he did, he seemed to flinch and turned his head toward the entrance of the cove. Tannluth saw his reaction and became concerned.

_:Arch? Is there something wrong?:_

"No, no-thing wrong, Tann-luth. Arch has to leave. You be here to-mor-row?"

_:I'll be here:_

"Good. Arch will bring oth-er friends. Want them to meet my new friend."

_:Other friends? What do you mean by that, Arch?:_

Arch started chittering in dolphinic laughter as he said; "You see to-mor-row. Bye." He then turned quickly and with a flick of his tail was speeding out of the cove toward the open sea.

Tannluth watched the dolphin race off and was purring contentedly. H'cup walked up to him and laid a hand on his shoulder. Tannluth looked down at his rider and nudged him gently with his snout.

_:Sorry about that, H'cup. This is supposed to be YOUR vacation and here I am taking up all the attention!:_

"Hey, nothing to be sorry about, buddy. I'm glad to see that you made a new friend. I wonder what he meant by 'bringing other friends'?"

_:I'm not sure. I think he meant some of his dolphin friends:_

"Guess we'll find out tomorrow."

* * *

><p><em>Whew! Another chapter done!<em>

_This one was tough to write. I can see why Anne McCaffrey did only one novel about the dolphins of Pern. I tried to think of how they might vocalize human words and I tried to come up with something unique. I remember that the lead dolphin in her__ book, the Tillek, was able to clearly pronounce longer words, but she was much older than all the other dolphins and had more time to practice her speech patterns. I also tried keeping close to how the dolphins are named. Arch, for example, would be short for Archimedes._

_**As always, thanks for reading and please leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**_


	26. Chapter 26 diversion

**Chapter 26 – Diversion**

* * *

><p><em>Hello, it's me again. I'm so sorry that it's taken so long for another update. I've had several problems crop up at once, one having serious writer's block (again). Another one being a major computer virus that totally infected my computer. I had to have my hard drive completely erased and reload a new OS (grrrr, I HATE X*&amp;%$#! hackers!) Anyway, I'm up and running again, so here's another chapter.<em>

_A/N: I've had a few people question me why I placed the events of this story in one of the most contentious Weyrs in all of Pern (besides Southern). First, it's because Telgar is the Weyr that covers the territory of the Smithcrafthall. During Search, riders cover their own territory for suitable candidates first, then go on to the surrounding lands. Second, it's because I wanted a source of conflict to keep things interesting. It's taken a bit of time, but H'cup and Tannluth are helping to change some attitudes around the Weyr and its surrounding territories._

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

* * *

><p>H'cup and Vailira spent six more days at Cove Hold, lounging on the beach, taking short flights over the surrounding jungle on their dragons, cavorting in the warm ocean water, and conversing with the dolphins whenever they showed up. H'cup was recuperating nicely and was really enjoying the time off, however, it was time to go back to work. Early in the morning of the seventh day, H'cup and Vailira started packing their belongings for their return trip to Telgar.<p>

"Do you have everything?" Vailira asked as she took a last look around their room.

H'cup nodded, "Yep, now all we have to do is say our goodbyes."

Throwing their carisaks over their shoulders and calling their fire lizards from their perch in the rafters, they walked through the Hold building saying their goodbyes to all the staff they got to know during their stay. Once they were done, they went outside to harness their dragons and strap their belongings aboard for their return flight. Tannluth turned his head to regard his rider.

_:What about the dolphins? Aren't you going to say goodbye to them as well?:_

H'cup slapped his forehead. "I knew I forgot something! Thanks buddy."

H'cup and Vailira walked to the stone pier with their dragons trailing behind them. At the end of the pier was a bronze bell on a short tower. Grabbing hold of the rope, H'cup gave a few strong pulls that got the bell ringing. After a dozen gongs of the bell, he stood back to wait for the dolphins to arrive. It wasn't long before they saw several dolphins swimming rapidly toward the pier. H'cup and Vailira climbed down to the floating platform tied next to the pier so they could get closer to the dolphins. Chrysolth and Tannluth both laid down at the end of the pier and lowered their heads to the water so they could converse with the dolphins as well. The dolphins slowed their approach and lifted their heads out of the water when they got next to the platform.

"Hel-lo hu-mans. Hel-lo Tann-luth. Hel-lo Chry-solth. Want to come swim-ming?" Arch asked in his high pitched voice.

"No Arch, we have to leave. We're just here to say goodbye."

"Awww, do not go. Tann-luth just get-ting good at tag."

Tannluth rumbled with his version of laughter. _:I don't know what you mean by 'getting good' Arch, I always keep missing each one of you when I try to touch you:_

A dolphin named Nere answered him. "Yes, but you keep get-ting clo-ser each time."

H'cup laughed and said, "Well, I know how you appreciate your games, but we really need to be heading back. Thank you everyone for showing us a really good time."

The dolphins seemed sad, but Arch spoke up again for the group.

"You come back ag-ain some-time?"

Vailira answered, "Yes Arch, we'll be back."

"Good. When back, ring bell. We hear, we come."

Then, one by one, the dolphins swam closer to the platform and pier so that H'cup and Vailira could stroke their hides and to rub noses with Tannluth and Chrysolth. After they said their goodbyes, the dolphins turned and slowly swam back out of the cove. H'cup and Vailira watched them go before mounting their dragons and strapping themselves on securely. H'cup looked to Vailira and seeing that she was strapped in, gave the fist pump signal to launch. With a mighty sweep of their wings, the dragons were airborne and rising rapidly over the waters of Cove Hold. He turned his head to look back at the picturesque cove.

"I'll miss this place."

_:Don't worry H'cup, we'll come back again sometime:_

H'cup laughed and slapped Tannluth's neck affectionately. "I suppose that you and Vailira will kidnap me again?"

Tannluth rumbled in amusement. _:You got it! Learn how to take a break every once in a while and not wear yourself out so much. I'm glad we got you away for a few days, this rest did you a world of good:_

"Well, I do feel a whole lot better than I did before. You're right, I'll have to remember not to push myself to the brink of exhaustion. I won't do anyone any good in that state."

_:Good to hear that you managed to learn something: _Before H'cup could think up a witty comeback, Tannluth told him, _:Chrysolth gave me some coordinates for a jump_ between_:_

"Chrysolth gave you the coordinates? I thought we were going back to the Weyr?"

_:Sorry, but I couldn't tell you before. It's another surprise that Vailira came up with:_

"Tannluth, we need to get back to the Weyr and the Armorcrafthall."

_:Don't worry H'cup, it's only for a day. We'll be back at the Weyr tomorrow:_

H'cup sighed. "All right Tannluth, take us _between_ to those coordinates."

Tannluth nodded and went _between_ a half second after Chrysolth disappeared. After the requisite time _between_, they burst out over a large expanse of forest with no human habitation in sight. H'cup could barely see the trees below him in the faint pre-dawn light.

"Tannluth, where are we?"

_:Over the woods just outside of Telgar Hold:_

"Outside of Telgar Hold? What are we doing here? Why don't we just go to the Hold itself?"

_:You'll have to ask Vailira those questions H'cup:_

H'cup sighed in irritation and looked over to his right where he could barely see the form of the queen dragon and her rider.

"Don't worry, I will."

H'cup tried looking down to see what was below them, but all he could make out was the tops of some tall trees. Suddenly, Tannluth banked to his left and started his descent. H'cup momentarily became alarmed but remembered that the dragons had much better low-light vision than he did. H'cup could just make out a deep depression in the blackness ahead of them when Tannluth flared his wings for a landing. He settled down to the ground gently, folded his wings, and turned his head toward his rider.

_:Well? We're here:_

"Thank you, Tannluth. Now I've got a few questions for our slippery little Queenrider."

H'cup unstrapped himself, slid off Tannluth's side, and strode over to where Vailira was pulling items out of carisaks strapped to Chrysolth's harness. H'cup could see that she was working by the light of several small glows. Coming up behind her, he tapped her on the shoulder.

"Vailira, just what are we doing here and where exactly are we?"

Vailira was smiling when she turned around but quickly dropped the smile when she saw the look on H'cup's face. Squaring her shoulders, she looked H'cup directly in the eyes.

"H'cup, do you trust me?"

"Why do you ask? You know I do Vailira."

"H'cup, I have to ask because you need to see something here at the Hold without any preconceived notions. I'm asking you to be a casual observer and to trust me in being your guide without asking questions as to what is going on. Do you think you can do that?"

"It's that important to you?"

Vailira stayed silent but nodded her head. H'cup sighed and nodded as well. Vailira brightened considerably and smiled as she pulled out a hooded tunic and some pants from her carisak and tossed it to him.

"Good. Now take off your flying gear and put those on." Once H'cup was finished changing clothes, Vailira handed him a crutch. "Also, I need you to take off your good leg and put your wooden one on."

"Vailira, I can't walk very well with my wooden leg. You know that."

"Yes, I do. That's why I have this crutch to help you walk."

"Walk? Where are we walking to?"

"Telgar Hold, of course."

"Why can't we just fly there?"

"Because we're not going as dragonriders."

"Not going as...Vailira, what about Tannluth and Chrysolth?"

"They're going to stay here for right now, they'll join us later today."

Tannluth stayed silent, but the whirling yellow color of his eyes showed his displeasure. Chrysolth's eyes were the same color as his but she was much more vocal as she pawed the ground.

_:NO! You're leaving us here? You can't!:_

Vailira ran forward to caress the eye ridges of her anxious queen dragon.

"Chrysolth, love, we're just going over those hills." Vailira pointed to the north. "I'll stay in constant mental contact with you. We only need to be discrete until after midday. That is when other dragons and their riders will show up. You can meet us there at that time." This seemed to slightly calm the golden dragon.

_:All right, I'll stay here. But I don't like it when you leave me:_

"I know. I don't like it either love, but this is very important. I'll see you later this afternoon." She gave her lifemate a good scratching on her eye ridges and kissed her snout as she backed away. She turned to see H'cup saying his goodbyes to Tannluth.

"Are you going to be okay here, buddy?" he asked.

_:I'll be all right, H'cup:_

"Keep Chrysolth company, okay?"

_:Don't worry, we're not going anywhere until you call us. I'll see you later today:_

H'cup started to leave but was interrupted when Heimdall decided to latch onto his shoulder.

"Heimdall, you're going to have to stay here as well." The little bronze fire lizard wasn't happy. He let H'cup know his displeasure by the swirling orange of his eyes and by chirping loudly at him.

"Hey, don't cuss at me, this wasn't my idea! We'll only be gone until this afternoon. You can stay with Tannluth, Chrysolth, and Jade until we call for you."

Heimdall gave a mournful croon and caressed his head on H'cup's cheek, but he obeyed H'cup's wishes and flew off his shoulder and landed on Tannluth's head. H'cup hugged Tannluth's neck, threw his carisak over his shoulder, put the crutch under his left arm, and followed Vailira through a path in the rocks at the end of the three-sided gorge. The path was actually a dry stream bed that led to a well-built road. Climbing the embankment, Vailira and H'cup looked both ways and started walking toward the north where Telgar Hold was located. They barely got started when they heard the clatter of approaching wagons. They turned to see a small caravan of ten wagons coming around the bend in the road heading toward Telgar. They stopped walking and waited for the wagons to approach them. Vailira leaned in and whispered in H'cup's ear.

"Keep silent and let me do the talking." H'cup turned his head to look at her, but when she raised an eyebrow he merely nodded his head. She smiled at him and held up a hand. She kept smiling as the wagons ground to a halt next to them. In the lead wagon, a middle-aged man smiled down at them.

"Good morning, are the two of you on your way to the Telgar gather?"

"Yes, we are. Thank you for stopping. We've been walking for two days and my friend's leg is starting to hurt. Is there any way we can ride with you for the rest of the distance?"

"Certainly, hop aboard! By the way, my name is Marlik and this is my wife Aveena."

"It's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Vailira and this is my friend Hiccup."

As Vailira and H'cup climbed into the back of the wagon, no one noticed the small figure scramble out of the last wagon in the caravan and wander into the woods.

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><p><em>Kind of a short chapter, I know. I'm trying to get back into the writing groove again. Hopefully, I'll get another chapter done by next week<em>

_**As always, thanks for reading and please leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**_


	27. Chapter 27 Gather Day

**Chapter 27 – Gather Day**

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><p><em>Thanks again everyone for all the lovely reviews!<em>

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p>H'cup and Vailira had no sooner got settled into the back of the wagon when Marlik gave a signal to the rest of the caravan. All the wagons started forward at the same time and continued north to Telgar. He then turned his head to regard his two new passengers.<p>

"So, you say you've been walking for two days?" H'cup and Vailira nodded. "Just out of curiosity, where did you start out from?"

H'cup started to answer, but was interrupted by Tannluth.

_:H'cup, Vailira wants me to remind you to let her explain things. Just follow her lead:_

"_Did Vailira tell you that personally?"_

_:No, her message was relayed through Chrysolth:_

"_Okay. Thanks buddy, I'll remember."_ H'cup looked to Vailira who was staring hard at him. He nodded his head that he got her message and she let out a breath that she was holding. She looked up at Marlik and smiled at him.

"We've been walking for two days after the group we originally rode with went in another direction. We originally started out from Falling Waters Hold."

"Falling Waters? That's a good distance from here. It's a mighty long way to go just for a Gather."

"Well, we're not just going to attend the Gather, we're also hoping to resettle somewhere. Maybe at the main Hold at Telgar or hopefully even the Weyr."

At the mention of the Weyr, Marlik scowled. "Now why would a couple of nice kids like you want to go to the Weyr?"

Vailira noticed that H'cup stiffened at his words and laid a hand on his arm to calm him. She kept her expression neutral as she answered Marlik.

"Why? Is there something wrong with the Weyr? Aren't they doing their duty to Pern and fighting Thread?"

"Oh, they're doing their duty all right. Most of them are all right and there's one dragon and rider in particular from Telgar Weyr that I'm especially grateful for, but it's the ones who act like they're Lords of all they survey that give the Weyr a bad name!"

"Are you talking about the Oldtimers? Our Harper taught us about them. Weren't they all exiled to the Southern continent?"

"Not all of them, just the ones who absolutely refused to change their ways. Apparently, some of the ones who are still around have decided that our regular tithes aren't enough and are starting to bully several Holders. They haven't tried their little tricks with me, but I've heard of several instances of bad encounters with dragonriders from neighbors of mine."

Vailira looked thoughtful, but H'cup was furious! Since Tannluth could 'hear' everything Marlik said, H'cup could tell the black dragon was angry as well.

"_Tannluth, is what he said the truth?"_

_:I'm afraid so, H'cup. I usually don't get much information from the dragons of the Weyr, especially the ones who came forward from the Oldtime. However, I occasionally hear things their riders talk about when they're walking around the Weyr bowl. Mind you, I've only had my suspicions, but what Marlik just said confirmed them:_

"_But Tannluth, they're STEALING!"_

_:Yes H'cup, I know, but what can we do? We're only one dragon and rider. How can we go up against most of the Weyr?:_

"_I don't know buddy, I just don't know"_

H'cup's reverie was interrupted by Marlik asking him a question.

"Pardon me for being curious, but how did you lose your leg?"

H'cup looked down and rubbed it reflexively. "I don't like to talk about it much, but I lost it in a fight."

Marlik whistled. "That must have been one hell of a fight!"

H'cup nodded. "It was, but you should see the other guy." He then lowered his head and went silent.

Vailira decided to continue the conversation. "So, Marlik, is this group from your Hold?"

He smiled and nodded. "Yep, it is. This is actually part of my extended family. I started out with a small cothold just South of here and it's just gotten bigger over the turns. We raise barley, flax, wheat, and corn along with several dozen herdbeasts. What we're mostly famous for is our beer. You're sitting on several barrels of our finest. We're hoping to turn a tidy profit at this Gather and buy supplies to get us through the winter."

"Well, we'll just have to visit your booth and sample your wares."

The rest of the ride to Telgar went fairly quickly and they arrived on the outskirts of the Gather by midmorning. H'cup and Vailira got off the wagon, thanked Marlik and Aveena for the ride, and started walking around the stalls. As H'cup and Vailira walked around the stalls, they were greeted by bright smiles and shouts of 'Good Morning'. H'cup was amazed at the variety of things that were on display and for sale. There were also a lot of enticing aromas in the air, fresh baked breads, meatrolls, and pies. Since they already had their breakfast, Vailira decided to buy some bubbly pies. H'cup accepted one and took a big bite.

"Oh, my, these are GOOD!"

Vailira nodded. "They are, aren't they?"

H'cup started saying, "Yeah, almost better than the ones we get..." and was stopped by a finger to his lips.

Vailira leaned in close and whispered, "You weren't going to finish that sentence with 'at the Weyr' now, were you?"

H'cup looked sheepish as he nodded his head. Vailira just smirked and started laughing at his expression.

"Don't worry H'cup, we only have to keep up this pretense for a little while longer."

"Why are we doing this? What are we waiting for?"

"We're waiting for the dragonriders to show up."

"What's going to happen then?"

Vailira smirked. "You'll see."

It was a little after noon and everyone turned their heads to look when they heard the watchdragon bugle a welcome to another dragon. Most of the people looked up to see several dragons circle the area and land on the fire heights above the Hold. Vailira nudged H'cup in the side and pointed to the vendors. He noticed quite a few of them putting away some of their best wares and changing prices on others. Overall the mood of the people became a bit darker and surlier than what he saw in the morning. Vailira grabbed his arm and walked toward the trees so they could talk privately.

"Do you see it now?"

H'cup nodded. "I see it, but I don't really understand."

"It's the way things are in the Holds around Telgar Weyr. People in the Holds are grateful to the dragons for keeping the skies clear of Thread, but they're not too fond of their riders. Falina first noticed it when she transferred here and since she trained me she's now made me aware of it as well."

"When did this start?"

Vailira shrugged. "I'm not sure, maybe after the time the Weyrleaders pledged to follow Benden's lead. Maybe it's been here all along. I know that R'mart doesn't really DO anything about it. Sure, he's a great Weyrleader, he enforces the rules INSIDE the Weyr and he takes care of his dragonriders, but he doesn't really control their behavior OUTSIDE the Weyr. Granted, it's only a few riders that continue to harass the Holders, but it's dragging the Weyr's reputation through the mud! Now that you know about it, there's hope that you'll do something to change it."

"But Vailira, I'm just one dragonrider! What can one man do? In order to enact sweeping changes in the Weyr, I'll need to be..." H'cup stopped and his jaw fell open when he saw Vailira's large smile. "Oh, no! Nononono! You want ME to be Weyrleader? Vailira, I don't have what it takes!"

Vailira reached up and caressed his cheek. "Oh H'cup, don't sell yourself short. Granted, we'll have to wait until R'mart steps down, but I'm sure you'll be a fine Weyrleader. You may not see yourself as a leader, but there are others who will disagree with you. For example, how many crafters have there been who became Masters before they turned twenty? I've only heard of one other. Not to mention you're bonded with the single most powerful dragon in Telgar Weyr and quite possibly the strongest dragon Pern has ever seen! He's already expressed his desire to fly Chrysolth, and he just might do it! And you are NOT alone! I know for a fact that you have the support of nearly all the dragonriders who Impressed since the Weyr came forward to this time. You've even impressed a few of the Oldtimers, M'dar for one. And you have someone else who will help you."

"Who?"

Vailira wrapped her arms around his shoulders, kissed him passionately and said, "Me."

H'cup threw his head back and laughed. "Well now, with an endorsement like that, how can I lose?"

"That's the spirit!"

"All right, now that other dragonriders are here, let's see about getting reunited with our own dragons, hmmm?"

"Sounds good." She turned her head to see someone shouting frantically. "Hey, what's that commotion over there?" She noticed a familiar face amongst the crowd. "That's Marlik and Aveena! They look upset! Let's go see what's going on." Walking over to the group, Vailira got Marlik's attention.

"Marlik, is there something wrong?"

"Yeah, there's something wrong. When we started unloading the wagons, we noticed that my niece was missing!"

"What is her name and what does she look like?"

"Her name is Cesilee. She has blonde hair and is seven turns old."

"All right, if we see her we'll let you know."

o0o0o0o

Meanwhile, several hours ride to the South, a young girl was wandering through the woods and getting very anxious. Earlier this morning when she felt the wagons coming to a halt, she thought they were at their destination and jumped off the back of her wagon and started exploring. At first she was confused that there were no people around at this 'Gather' that her parents were talking so excitedly about. When she didn't see anyone at first, she wandered into an open field where she saw all the pretty flowers and started running through them. She figured her family was going to be coming here soon and since this was such a nice place, she laid down and took a nap. When she woke up and still couldn't see anyone, she started getting worried and headed back the way she came from. She got back to the road and saw that the wagons were gone. In a bit of panic, she ran into the woods on the other side of the road. She ran through the woods for a bit until the ground just fell away. She stopped at the edge of a cliff and looked to her right and left to see if there was a way around it. She heard a noise below her and when she looked down she gasped in surprise at seeing two dragons! One of them must have heard her because it lifted its head and looked right at her. She was so startled by this she backed up into a tree branch that got tangled in her hair. As she struggled to free herself, she didn't notice that she was getting closer to the edge of the cliff. As the last of the branches became untangled from her hair, she stepped off the cliff into open air and screamed as she sailed over the edge.

Tannluth looked up from where he was lounging next to Chrysolth when he heard a noise coming from above him. He looked up toward the ledge and right into the eyes of a young girl. Apparently, this startled her and she got tangled in some tree branches. This would have been funny if she wasn't so close to the edge of the cliff. When she stepped over the edge, Tannluth was already moving toward the base of the cliff. He skidded to a stop underneath her, extended a wing, and caught her on the membrane between his outer wing bones. She bounced twice and then stopped, slightly winded. Tannluth gently lowered her to the ground and turned to look at her with whirling yellow eyes.

_:Are you all right, child? Are you harmed in any way?:_

Her eyes went wide. "Y-you talked to me! In my head!"

_:Of course. That is how all dragons talk to humans:_

She backed up in fear. "A-are you g-going to e-eat me now?"

Tannluth and even Chrysolth visibly flinched. _:EAT you? Did you actually think I was going to EAT you? Now what makes you think I would do a horrible thing like that?:_

"M-my cousin said that dragons eat little girls whenever they catch them."

_:Well, I did catch you but I think your cousin was being cruel and was teasing you. Dragons would NEVER knowingly hurt a human unless they were defending themselves or their rider:_

"Y-you're really not going to eat me?"

_:Nope:_

"W-well, I'm hoping you can help me instead."

_:What is the problem?:_

"I'm lost and I don't know where I am."

_:Well, you're in a gorge and you're standing right here in front of me:_

The girl stomped her foot and started getting upset. "That's not what I meant! My parents said we were going to a Gather and I thought we were there and I jumped out to explore and I found a field with pretty flowers and I took a nap and there was no one around and I tried to get back to them and couldn't find them and now I'm lost and then I fell off a cliff..." Her tirade got louder and louder as she started crying. By the time she finished, her head was hanging down and fat tears rolled down her cheeks. She felt something warm and leathery bump into her chest. She opened her eyes to see the snout of the dragon right up against her. Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around his head and bawled loudly. Tannluth stayed silent and supported her weight until she got her emotions back under control. She wiped her eyes and stood up.

"I'm sorry."

_:What for?:_

"For crying on you. I mean, you're a big, strong dragon and I'm just a little girl. That's not what you're supposed to be doing, is it?"

_:Well, if you put it that way, it's not. But there may be something that I can do to help you:_

"What?"

_:Our riders went ahead to Telgar. They will call for us when they are finished with what they are doing there. When they call, I can take you there with us:_

"Y-you want me to RIDE you?"

_:No, you won't be able to ride me since you don't have the proper straps, but I can carry you:_

"You won't drop me, will you?"

_:No, I will not. I promise, I'll be very careful with you:_

"All right. Um, by the way, my name is Cesilee."

_:It is a pleasure to meet you Cesilee. My name is Tannluth and my companion's name is Chrysolth. The bronze fire lizard goes by the name of Heimdall and the green one is Jade:_ Chrysolth inclined her head toward the girl in greeting while Heimdall leaned forward from his perch on Tannluth's head to chirp a greeting at her. Jade ignored her completely.

"It's nice to meet all of you. So, how long do we wait?"

_:Just a moment and I'll check:_ Tannluth concentrated on his link with his rider. _:Hey, H'cup, how much longer are you two going to play around at the Gather?:_

"_I can't talk right now Tannluth, we're trying to find a missing girl!"_

_:Is she about seven or eight turns old with yellow hair and goes by the name Cesilee?:_

"_That's her! Is she there with you, did you find her?"_

_:Sure did! She's real cute too, for a human. Can I keep her?:_

"_Tannluth! She's not a stray canine that you can adopt! She has parents who are frantic with worry over her whereabouts!"_

_:Awww, you're no fun! All right, I'll bring her with me whenever you want us to meet you there:_

"_How will you do that?"_

_:I'll carry her in my paws. Don't worry, I'll be very careful with her:_

H'cup hesitated slightly, but he trusted his dragon. _"All right buddy, I'll leave it up to you. Wait for our signal, we'll be ready shortly."_

_:Got it:_

Tannluth relayed H'cup's instructions to Cesilee and Chrysolth. Now all they had to do was wait. Meanwhile, H'cup and Vailira made their way towards a stand of thick woods beyond the Gather tents. They were looking for a clearing big enough for the dragons to land in. After nearly an hour of searching, they found a spot big enough that was out of sight from the rest of the Hold. Changing out of their plain clothes, they both put on their flying gear and H'cup put on his good leg. He sighed in relief as this one didn't hurt him like his other one did. Once they were dressed, he called out to Tannluth.

"_Okay buddy, we're ready. Fly low so the other dragons don't see you. Can you visualize where I'm located?"_

_:Yep, I can see it clearly, no problem:_

"_Good, now please, please be careful with the girl!"_

_:Don't worry H'cup, I've got everything under control:_ Tannluth looked right into Cesilee's eyes as he addressed her. _:All right Cesilee, I'm going to hold you in my forepaws. I'll turn my claws inward so they don't scratch you but I want you to tell me if I'm squeezing you too hard. You need to answer me with your voice so I can tell if you're breathing is okay. Can you do that?:_ Her eyes were wide as she nodded. Tannluth had her turn around and gently curled his long talons around her small body and held her firmly.

_:Is that too tight?:_

"No, that's not too tight. I can breathe just fine."

_:Very good. Now don't be scared, but we're going to fly for a little while. Here we go: _Tannluth nodded to Chrysolth that he was ready. Before he took off, both of the fire lizards launched themselves from their perches and hovered overhead waiting for the bigger dragons. Tannluth lifted his wings, bunched his back legs in preparation to launch, and leaped into the air with a mighty downstroke of his wings. At first, Cesilee kept her eyes closed, but after peeking a bit she found that flying by dragon was breathtaking! She spread her arms to the side and screamed in pure joy. Tannluth was worried at first, but calmed down when he heard her laughing with delight. He was glad that she was enjoying this! All too soon, their little flight was over and they touched down in the clearing. Once there, both Jade and Heimdall made a beeline for their humans and chirped in pleasure as they got their heads rubbed. Tannluth remained on his haunches and held on to Cesilee until she stood up under her own power. When he let her go, she jumped up and down and spun in circles in her excitement.

"Oh WOW! That was THE most...EVERYTHING...EVER! Can we do it again Tannluth? Pleeeasee?"

_:We'll go flying again in a few moments Cesilee, but now you'll have to be strapped on properly. Oh, let me introduce you to my rider, H'cup:_

Cesilee turned around expecting an older man, instead she saw a man who was barely out of his teens smiling at her.

"YOU'RE Tannluth's rider?"

"Yep, and you've been causing a lot of problems and heartache for your parents, young Cesilee."

She hung her head and mumbled, "Sorry."

"I'm not the one you need to say 'sorry' to. Now, before we fly back to Telgar and get you reunited with your family, you need to get your story straight."

Cesilee frowned. "My story? What's wrong with my story? I got lost and Tannluth found me. He then flew me back here where I met you."

"And just HOW did he fly you back here?"

"He held me in his...oh."

"Uh huh, I see you've thought of your parent's reaction to that story. I'm sure their response would be much stronger than 'oh'."

"Then what do I tell them?"

"Tell them you were in a field close to where you jumped off the wagon. We saw you wave at us while we were flying overhead and flew down to pick you up. We strapped you on Tannluth's back and flew you here."

Cesilee nodded. "That sounds much better than my previous story."

"Okay, let's get you up on Tannluth's back and strapped in properly."

Even though Tannluth lifted his foreleg to give his rider and passenger a boost, H'cup still had to lift Cesilee a bit so she could sit on the dragon's broad back. H'cup climbed on behind her and started fastening straps across her midsection and legs. Once both of them were secure, he checked to see if Vailira was ready as well. When she nodded, H'cup gave the fist pump signal to launch. Both dragons climbed rapidly above the trees and turned toward the main Hold. They barely flapped their wings a dozen times before they were challenged by Telgar's watch dragon. Tannluth and Chrysolth answered with their own roars and the pair of dragons circled the Gather tents trying to find a certain family. When H'cup spotted them, he told Cesilee to wave to them and then had Tannluth land in a field close by. Chrysolth backwinged to a soft landing right beside him as a large group of people crossed the field and stopped a short distance away from them. H'cup undid the straps on both Cesilee and himself and then lowered her onto Tannluth's foreleg. Once on the ground, H'cup and Cesilee stepped away from the dragons just as a middle aged woman broke away from the group to run towards them.

"CESILEE! Where have you been, child? We've looked everywhere for you!"

Cesilee ran from H'cup's side to crash into her mother's arms.

"I'm sorry, momma. I thought we were at the Gather when the wagons stopped. I got off and started exploring, but when I saw you weren't around I tried finding you but you were already gone! I was waiting in a field when I saw dragons flying and I waved to them. They came down and picked me up and brought me here."

The woman looked up to see H'cup smiling at her. His smile turned to a frown as Cesilee's mother spoke.

"Well, dragonrider, you have my thanks for returning my child back to her family, but I would ask you from now on to keep yourself and your dangerous beast away from my daughter."

Before H'cup could respond to her comment, Cesilee put her fists on her hips and scolded her.

"MOMMA! Don't say those nasty things about Tannluth! He's very nice and polite and he even likes me."

The woman snorted. "Yeah, I'm sure he likes you, as a midday snack!"

"MOMMA, STOP! You're being nasty again! Tannluth said he would never hurt a human and I believe him!"

"Tannluth? The dragon Tannluth TOLD you that? I'm afraid you're letting your imagination run away from you again Cesilee. Dragons can't talk, they're just beasts!"

Cesilee stomped her foot. "He can too talk, I'll show you!" Turning around, she took a few steps away from her mother and faced the black dragon. "Tannluth, show her. Talk to her the same way you talked to me. Please?"

Tannluth just hung his head and crooned sadly in his throat.

"Tannluth, what's wrong?"

_:I cannot speak to your mother, Cesilee:_

"What do you mean?"

_:What I mean is that I cannot feel her mind at all. There is nothing wrong with her brain, but her belief that dragons are dumb beasts is so strong that it has closed her mind to any possibility of her hearing dragons speaking:_

Cesilee gasped. "That's awful!"

Tannluth tilted his head to the side in an imitation of a shrug. _:That's life. Some people can hear us while others can't. It is the way of things:_

Cesilee had tears in her eyes but nodded her head. "Well, thank you again for finding me and bringing me here. I'll never forget you." She walked back with her mother to be reunited with the rest of her family. One other person broke away from the group to meet H'cup and Vailira. H'cup noticed that it was Marlik and he didn't look too happy. He gestured to a corner of the field away from the rest of his family and started talking in low tones.

"Well now, I suppose it's DRAGONRIDER Hiccup now, or however you contract your name. Care to explain the need to deceive us by sneaking into the Gather without your dragon?"

H'cup held up his hands in a placating gesture. "Holder Marlik, it wasn't my intention to deceive anyone. My coming here incognito was for my own education into how things really are around the Holds. I couldn't show myself as a dragonrider at first because I needed to see how people react around those who are not dragonriders. I now see there is a problem with several of the dragonriders of Telgar Weyr and I hope to do something about it. By the way, my name is H'cup and my dragon is Tannluth."

Marlik stood there with his arms crossed as he listened to H'cup's explanation. When he finished, he smiled and held out his hand.

"Rider H'cup, I can understand now why you wanted to keep your identity a secret, but now let me thank you personally for finding my niece and for your service in fighting Thread. You see, YOU are the one I wanted to thank for the things you've done for the holds these past few months. I walk sweep after every Fall and I've noticed recently that very few Thread manages to reach the ground. I've seen your dragon flaming and it is something to behold! Again, thank you for your duty toward Pern."

H'cup gripped Marlik's forearm and shook it. "Holder Marlik, on behalf of my dragon Tannluth I accept your thanks, but he did all the work. Why don't you thank him yourself?"

Marlik looked over H'cup's shoulder to where the black dragon was watching them with blue whirling eyes. He gulped and approached the dragon with tentative steps. Tannluth lowered his head so he was eye level with the nervous holder.

"Umm, Tannluth, um, I wanted to say thank you for your service fighting Thread and for bringing my niece back to us."

_:You're very welcome, Holder Marlik. I'm glad I could do my part to keep Pern safe. Also, it was my pleasure to bring back your niece:_

Marlik's eyes went so wide that Tannluth thought they would pop out of his head.

"You spoke to me! I could hear your voice in my head! You actually spoke to me!"

_:Yes, that was me. Is this the first time you've ever spoken to a dragon?:_

"First time I've ever been near one. I don't believe the same things Cesilee's mother Neera believes in. I've heard too many things to believe that dragons are just dumb beasts. I'm glad to see that is not true in your case."

_:Thank you for your belief in dragon intelligence, Holder Marlik. I will continue to do my best to keep all the holds safe from Thread:_

Marlik bowed to the dragon and turned away to rejoin the rest of his family. H'cup walked up to Tannluth and laid a hand on his head.

"Well buddy, it looks like you made a good impression. It would be nice if more Holders adopted the views Marlik has. It would make Weyr-Hold relations go much smoother."

_:I know what you mean, H'cup. Give it time, it will happen:_

"I hope so, buddy. I sure hope so. Say, why don't you take Chrysolth and go up to the fire heights. You can see a lot more of what is going on. Besides, you can greet the other dragons as they are coming in."

_:Sounds like a good idea. You going to be okay down here?:_

"Yep, I'll give you a call in case I need you."

Tannluth nodded his head to Chrysolth and both dragons took to the air. As there were nothing but blue, brown, and green dragons on the fire-heights, the other dragons made way so they could have the best spot. Chrysolth landed first and Tannluth settled down next to her. When H'cup and Vailira saw their dragons settle into their watchful positions, they turned their attention back to the Gather. Walking around the stalls, H'cup couldn't help but notice the cooler reception that he got from the vendors. Some of them were like Marlik, thanking him for his duty while others were cold or outright hostile. He was about to call Tannluth in order to leave when he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"Hey H'cup, hello Vailira, I thought I recognized your dragons here."

Turning around, H'cup greeted the blue rider walking towards him and his face split into a wide grin. Vailira smiled at him as well.

"Hello T'yner, glad to see you made it. Enjoying the Gather so far?"

"Sure am. I'm going to one of the bubbly pie stalls, do you want some?"

"Nah, we had some earlier today." H'cup pointed over his shoulder. "Try the stall at the end of this row, her pies are a little bigger than some of the others I've seen here."

"Thanks, I will." Just at that moment, several large shadows passed overhead while the Telgar watch-dragon bugled a challenge. All eyes turned up to watch the new arrivals, amongst them a smaller bronze dragon. Most of the Gather participants shrugged their shoulders, but a few, H'cup, Vailira, and T'yner in particular shook their heads and groaned. H'cup was the first to voice his displeasure.

"Aw no, did HE have to show up?"

T'yner grinned. "H'cup, you should have realized by now that J'kun couldn't avoid betting on a runner race if his life depended on it. I've heard he travels to Gathers other than Telgar's just so he could get in on the action!"

H'cup's response was interrupted by Tannluth's angry roaring.

_:NO, I won't move! I was here first, go find your own spot on the ledge!:_

"_Tannluth, what's wrong?"_

_:It's Histeth! He thinks that because he's a bronze dragon it's his right to be seen next to a queen dragon and is trying to get me to move. I'm telling him to go take a flying leap at the Red Star!:_

Everyone watched the confrontation between the two dragons, Histeth hovering next to the ledge roaring down at the black dragon and Tannluth spreading his wings and roaring back. After Histeth made a few close passes trying to intimidate Tannluth, the bronze dragon gave up and landed on an open spot a short distance away, hissing and clawing at the rock. Histeth's rider J'kun was livid! He threw the riding straps off his legs, dismounted his dragon, and stalked off toward the gather to try and find the rider of the rebellious black dragon and give him a piece of his mind. Fortunately, he couldn't see the people below from his position on the ridge, so H'cup had a little bit of time to plan for the confrontation with the irate bronze rider.

"_Tannluth, did Histeth say anything about his rider?"_

_:Yes, he said that my rider is going to be sorry when J'kun finds him:_

"_Okay, thanks buddy."_

"Vailira, T'yner, let's head over to where the crowds are thickest. J'kun is pretty angry and is trying to find me. I have a feeling he wants to start a fight and I want to be in the middle of a crowd so there are plenty of witnesses!"

Vailira and T'yner agreed, so the trio went off to mingle with the largest crowds. Their strategy work for most of the day. They would occasionally see glimpses of the bronze rider and his few friends, but the press of the Gather crowds kept them hidden. By the time of the evening dance they thought that J'kun had left, but a glance toward the fire heights showed that Histeth was still there.

H'cup sighed, "Shards, I was hoping he left already."

Vailira shook her head. "You forgot how stubborn he can be."

"Yeah, I suppose. Would you care for a dance?"

"I thought you'd never ask."

H'cup took her hand and led her to the area marked off for dancing. The first song was a slow one, so H'cup held her close while Vailira laid her head against his chest. Halfway through the song, her head came up and she sucked in a breath.

"What is it? What's wrong?"

"It's J'kun. He's seen us and he's coming this way!"

"Stay calm and keep dancing. Act like you don't see him."

Vailira nodded and laid her head back on H'cup's chest. She kept her eyes half closed so she could see J'kun's approach and try to figure out what he was going to do. She let out a breath in relief when she noticed he was staggering, the man must have been drunk! With no finesse or subtlety, he slapped a hand on H'cup's shoulder and tried spinning him around so he could punch him. However, H'cup was ready for him. He had planned on using a move that Astrid first taught him. As soon as J'kun twisted him around, he went with the movement and spun on his right foot and using his prosthetic foot as a club. He did a leg sweep on the bronze rider, knocking his legs out from under him and sending him crashing into the floor. All movement stopped in the area as everyone watched the confrontation. There wasn't much to see as J'kun was rolling around on the ground holding his knee and howling in pain.

"ARRRRGGHHH! I'll get you for this you...you...GIMP! You and your freak dragon!"

"J'kun, just what is your problem with me?"

H'cup wasn't sure if it was the alcohol talking or if the man was just monumentally stupid, but his next comment caused the entire crowd to gasp out loud. "YOU STOLE MY QUEENRIDER! She was supposed to be with me and you stole her!"

This proved too much for Vailira as she stepped forward and started kicking him in the ribs. "STOLE me? You incredibly...stupid...insufferable...moronic...asinine..wherry-brained JERK! I was NEVER yours to begin with, you idiot! Now, LEAVE ME AND MY WEYRMATE ALONE!"

J'kun tried protecting himself from the furious queenrider's assault, but she was relentless. After a good dozen hits, she stepped back from the moaning bronze rider. H'cup watched her expression, then squatted down and poked J'kun in the shoulder.

"Hey, J'kun, if I were you, I'd leave Vailira alone. I don't think she likes you very much."

J'kun coughed and spat up a bit of blood. "She'll like me come next turn."

H'cup frowned. "Why? What happens next turn?"

J'kun gave him a bloody grin. "And you call me the stupid one? Her dragon will rise to mate next turn. And when she does, my Histeth will fly her and Vailira will be mine!"

Vailira gasped, turned around, and walked through the crowd. H'cup watched her go and then bent down so he was inches in front of J'kun's face. He growled, "You think your dragon will fly Chrysolth? Never. Going. To. Happen." He then stood up and walked out of the dance area to find where Vailira went off to. After a few inquiries, he found her standing next to a field looking at the twin moons rising. He could tell she was upset, so he walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her torso. She simply sighed and leaned back into him.

"H'cup, what if what he says is true?"

"Do you really think Histeth has a chance of catching Chrysolth?"

"I'm not sure, he IS a bronze dragon."

"Yeah, the smallest bronze dragon in Telgar Weyr who's never caught a queen!"

Vailira laughed. "Yeah, that's right. But what about the other bronze dragons? Do you think Tannluth has a chance against them?"

H'cup mentally spoke to his dragon. _"Well, what do you think, buddy? Will you be ready to fly __Chrysolth when she rises to mate?"_

Tannluth's mental tone was smug. _:Of course, I already told you I'm going to fly her. In fact, I plan on training her over the next turn. She WILL be ready, and so will I:_

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><p><em>Whew! This one took a while to get up. You can guess what is going to happen next chapter, so check back for updates.<em>

_**As always, thanks for reading and please leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**_


	28. Chapter 28 Preflight Training

**Chapter 28 – Preflight Training  
><strong>

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><p><em>Hello everyone, it's another update!<em>

_A/N: At first I was going to have this chapter feature Chrysolth's mating flight with a little preparation and training beforehand, but I realized there is material for a whole other chapter. So, I'm going to put off the actual flight for one more chapter. With that being said, Enjoy!_

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p>Two days after the foursome arrived back in Telgar Weyr, Tannluth started training himself so he would be the one to catch Chrysolth during her first mating flight. He was fairly confident in his current flight capabilities, but the fact remains that he would be one of the smaller dragons participating, so he would just have to get stronger. He began training himself by using every spare moment he had to push himself to speeds and heights he's never reached before. Instead of laying on one of the upper ledges to catch some sun like the other dragons were doing during their free time, he would use that time to fly laps around the Weyr, going faster and faster each lap. Every day he would train himself harder and harder and every evening he would drag himself into his weyr where he would collapse onto his stone ledge, completely exhausted. This went on for two months before H'cup became alarmed and approached his dragon.<p>

"Um, Tannluth? Are you okay, buddy?"

Tannluth cracked open an eyelid to look up at his rider. He lifted his head and yawned. He then laid his head down on his crossed forepaws.

_:Yeah H'cup, I'm alright. I'm just a little tired:_

"Don't you think you're overdoing things a little bit? I mean, every day I see you go out and fly laps over and over again and when you come in you're totally exhausted. I'm getting a little worried that you're going to hurt yourself."

Tannluth opened his eyes to see H'cup standing in front of him shifting his weight from one foot to another. He could tell his rider was really worried about him. He lifted his head and licked him on his cheek.

_:H'cup, I appreciate that you're concerned about me, but I assure you that I'm fine. What I'm doing is pushing myself so that I'll be much faster and stronger than any bronze who wants to fly Chrysolth. I'm to the point right now that I can fly flat out for over a candlemark without stopping. My goal is to be able to go five times that by this time next turn:_

H'cup whistled. THAT would be pretty impressive! Granted, dragons would fly for candlemarks on end when battling Thread, but most of that involved gliding and short rest breaks whenever restocking bags of firestone. Mating flights are totally different in that they last just two or three candlemarks at the most since all the dragons participating are going flat out as hard as they can from the very beginning. Only the strongest, fastest, and craftiest dragons would even stand a chance at catching the queen.

"You're up to a candlemark now? How long could you go when you first started?" H'cup sat next to his head and started scratching his eye ridges. Tannluth leaned into his caresses and started purring.

_:Oh, that feels SO good! As for how long I used to go, less than half that time. I've also been able to fly higher than I've ever gone before. I couldn't do it with you on my back because there wasn't enough air there for you to survive:_

"Wow, that's great, buddy! What's next on your agenda?"

_:What's next is to get a good bit of sleep. After that, I'm going to train a bit more and later on see about participating in some green flights:_

H'cup stopped his scratching as his jaw dropped open in shock, hoping his lifemate wasn't serious about flying a green dragon. Granted, it would be good training for Tannluth because green dragons were smaller and more nimble than queen dragons thus making them harder to catch. The problem for H'cup was that since greens were fighting dragons and the Weyr didn't allow women to fly against Thread, all the riders of green dragons in Telgar Weyr were men. Most of the riders of the green dragons chose to sequester themselves during their dragon's mating flight, however there were a few who were openly homosexual and didn't have any compunctions with bedding the rider of the dragon who caught theirs. H'cup sincerely hoped that Tannluth wasn't going to fly one of _those_ dragons!

"Um, Tannluth, you're not serious when you said you were participating in a green flight, were you? You know what happens if you catch her and you know that Vailira is my weyrmate. I'm not interested in any others."

Tannluth tilted his head to look at his rider. _:Don't worry H'cup, I'm not going to CATCH them. I just said I'll be in the flights for practice, that's all. I'll stay at the back of the pack so any dragons that ARE interested in the green won't feel threatened by my presence:_

"Oh. Well, as long as it doesn't distress anyone there shouldn't be anything wrong with it."

o0o0o0o

It was a few days later when a loud, high-pitched screech shattered the calm of the morning. All of the Weyr's occupants looked toward the green dragon who was issuing her challenge to the gathered males. Most of the people simply shrugged and continued their day's activities as if nothing was amiss. A few, however, were paying special attention to every move the green dragon was making. Two in particular were the black dragon and his rider. H'cup recognized the green dragon and knew the preferences of her rider. He groaned and looked at Tannluth who was watching the green intently.

"Tannluth, buddy, you remember our talk a few days ago? About the consequences of catching a green?"

Tannluth risked turning his head to regard his rider. _:I remember it well, H'cup. Don't worry, I intend to fly just one dragon in this Weyr and her hide's color isn't green!:_

H'cup was about to respond but was interrupted by another loud challenge from the strutting green. The gathered male dragons answered her challenge with bugles of their own after which the green shot into the air. A fraction of a second later, over two dozen suitors took off after her in hot pursuit. Tannluth waited until the last dragon cleared the top of the Weyr's peak before he also sprung into the air. He started by going all out to catch up with the group, but had to reduce his efforts by almost half when he quickly caught up with the back of the pack. Since there were only blues and browns chasing this female, Tannluth was the largest dragon flying after her but was able to easily keep up with the quick jinks, turns, flips, and direction changes the green was making in order to lose her pursuers. After a quarter candlemark, nearly half the dragons dropped out of the chase but Tannluth maintained his spot at the rear of the group. A few minutes went by before a blue dragon managed to slip underneath the green and lock talons with her and the flight was over. The other dragons flew back to the Weyr tired and frustrated, but Tannluth was fine so he continued flying, lost in his thoughts. He was interrupted by H'cup's mental call.

"_Hey buddy, how did it go?"_

_:Oh, hey H'cup, it went great! All the other dragons were totally exhausted after that bit of flying but I'm not the least bit tired AND I had to hold back quite a bit to keep from the front of the pack. Looks like my training is paying off, but I'll participate in a few more green flights to make sure of my progress:_

"_You SURE you're not overdoing things a little bit?"_

_:I'm positive. Don't worry H'cup, I'm perfectly fine. You remember how strong my wings were when I was just two months out of the shell? My wings and muscles are MANY times stronger now. I feel like I could fly for days on end if I wish!:_

"_Now that IS overdoing it! You do have to eat and sleep occasionally!"_

Tannluth mentally chuckled. _:True, true, but I'm just describing how I feel at this moment. Say, you want to go for a flight right now? Just for fun?:_

"_Sounds great! Meet me at our weyr's entrance and I'll have the harness ready."_

Tannluth performed a few lazy spirals in order to give H'cup time to lay out the riding harness. Landing in the Weyr bowl, he trotted up to his cave's entrance and stepped into the prepared harness. While buckling it on, H'cup frowned as he noticed something different about the way the harness was secured.

"Tannluth, I've made marks on the straps to keep track of your growth ever since you've had a flight harness. Almost all of the marks indicated that your growth was slowing, but some of them show that you're now getting bigger and a few show that you're getting smaller! Did you have any idea that this was going to happen?"

Normally, a rider would automatically run to a dragon healer if he had any concern about the health of his dragon. However, H'cup realized that Tannluth had a vast storehouse of knowledge concerning dragon health and growth.

_:I had an inkling that this would happen, H'cup. My body has not reached its full growth yet and is adapting to the exercises that I am doing. By the time Chrysolth is ready for her mating flight, I will more than likely be the fastest flying dragon Pern has ever seen!:_

H'cup took a few steps back to get a better perspective of his friend. Dragons tended to have deep chests to accommodate their lungs and the massive breast muscles which powered their wings. Tannluth's chest was quite a bit larger around, but H'cup noticed that he was longer in the torso as well. That way he could get extra lung capacity without having a bigger chest which would create aerodynamic drag. H'cup thought his physique was beginning to look like images he's seen of the felines of the Southern continent, although he couldn't remember what they were called.

_:Cheetahs:_

"What?"

_:Cheetahs. That's the name of the felines that you were trying to remember. I happened to see it in your memories and I was able to recall it better:_

H'cup leaned his head back and laughed, slapping Tannluth's side affectionately. "Showoff."

_:You're not mad?:_

H'cup blinked. "Why should I be? You seem to be happy about the changes in your body so I am happy for you as well. If it makes your chances better at catching Chrysolth, then that's all well and good!"

Tannluth purred happily as he licked H'cup's cheek. He laughed as he climbed onto Tannluth's back, secured his riding straps, and gave the signal to launch. Tannluth bunched his muscles and with a mighty downstroke of his wings, lifted effortlessly into the sky and powered straight up. H'cup whooped in astonishment and Tannluth bugled in joy as he actually _accelerated_ in a vertical climb! After several more wingbeats, he leveled off and did some fast flying towards the east. He then pulled straight up, arched his back, flipped over until he was pointed straight to the ground, and tucked his wings in for a dive. Even though H'cup tried flattening himself to Tannluth's neck, they were going so fast that the wind nearly tore his goggles off. H'cup became alarmed when he noticed that Tannluth was aiming for a narrow canyon to the east of the Weyr. The howling wind prevented any audible communication so he mentally 'spoke' with his dragon.

"_Tannluth? Are you seriously thinking of navigating that canyon?"_

_:Don't worry H'cup, I've got this:_

"_Buddy, you do realize that only smaller dragons fly that canyon, AND at slower speeds than we're going right now?"_

Tannluth remained unconcerned._ :Yep, but I've already been through it several times AND at speeds a bit faster than what we're doing right now!:_

H'cup's eyes went wide with astonishment. _"This isn't flat out for you?"_

_:Nope. I clipped the walls a few times at my fastest speed and I didn't want to risk it with you on my back. I know for sure I can get through unscathed at this speed:_

H'cup grabbed the harness tighter. _"Okay buddy, I trust you."_

_:That's good to hear. Now hold on, here we go!:_

Before Tannluth passed over the rim of the canyon, he let out a powerful roar and a mental shout that said, _:EVERYONE, GET OUTTA THE WAY!:_ H'cup could see several blue dragons, three greens, and one brown give a startled squawk of surprise while winging their way quickly out of the canyon. Tannluth flared out of his dive, but his speed was incredible! One of the walls were coming up fast and H'cup didn't think there was enough room for Tannluth to make it through, but somehow he did. The walls were so close that he could have touched them, but he flattened himself so much against Tannluth's neck that he almost became a part of him. They turned, rolled, spun, and banked so many times that H'cup couldn't believe that Tannluth didn't get dizzy from it all. When Tannluth spread his wings and leveled off, H'cup raised his head and looked around. He noticed they were above a wider and straighter part of the river. They made it through! And all without a single bump or scratch! H'cup raised his arms and shouted with joy.

"YEEEAAAAHHH!"

Tannluth replied with his own roar and remarked smugly, _:Told you I could do it:_

H'cup patted him affectionately on the neck. "That you did buddy, that you did. Your flying is becoming even more impressive, bud. I don't think any dragon is going to have a chance against you during Chrysolth's flight!"

Instead of making a happy sound, Tannluth surprised H'cup by shaking his head.

"What? What's wrong?"

_:It's not enough:_

"What's not enough?"

_:This training that I'm doing, it's not enough. I can't leave anything to chance. Sure, I've gotten stronger and faster and when the time comes to fly Chrysolth I'll be stronger still, but there's always the possibility that another bronze will get lucky and catch her. I cannot let that happen:_

"What do you propose to do about it?"

_:Train her, of course:_

H'cup stifled a laugh. "Oh, J'kun is NOT going to like that!"

Tannluth snorted, _:Histeth's rider can go take a bath in live Thread for all I care of him and his opinions!:_

"Ooooh, nasty! Anyway, how do you propose we do this?"

_:Well, let's start with getting Vailira to agree with training Chrysolth. We'll need her to remind Chrysolth to train every day. Obviously, I can't push her as hard as I've been pushing myself, but since she is still growing I expect the end results will pretty much be the same:_

o0o0o0o_  
><em>

When they approached Vailira and offered their proposal, she was all for it but checked with Chrysolth first.

"What is your opinion of this, love?"

_:Sounds good to me. There is nothing wrong with getting stronger and Tannluth is already a handsome and strong dragon. If he catches me, our children would be that much stronger for it:_

And so began Chrysolth's training. Tannluth took it slowly at first, treating training sessions as games of tag. He would constantly fly out of Chrysolth's range and egging her on by gently teasing her. They would continue their games until Tannluth sensed that she was getting too tired. Eventually the games lasted longer and longer as Chrysolth's stamina improved. Tannluth also used the trips down to the Armorcrafthall as training flights by flying straight both ways. That way both of them got over three more candlemarks flight time.

Another benefit of their constant training was Tannluth's mental capabilities refining themselves. His fear of dominating another dragon kept him from using his full abilities, but he discovered that his growing feelings for Chrysolth enabled him to tap into a smaller portion of his powers. He suspected that he was using these abilities more and more after the times when Chrysolth wanted to quit training. The first time he suspected using his powers on her was when he knew that she had much greater reserves to utilize, but she wanted to lie on one of the upper ledges and sun herself. He growled at her to get up and keep flying and to his astonishment she immediately complied. He watched her carefully to see if she was suffering the same symptoms as the blue dragon he first used his powers on, but she wasn't staggering, disoriented, or bleeding from the ears and nose. He went easy on her, having her fly a few more laps around the Weyr before landing again. He was a bit nervous and scared about what happened, so he went and relayed the scenario to H'cup.

"Whoa!"

_:Yeah, my sentiments exactly:_

"Well, I wouldn't be too terribly concerned about it, buddy. After all, you didn't hurt her, did you?"

_:No, but H'cup, I CONTROLLED her! I made her do something she didn't want to do!:_

"Calm down, bud. I don't think you controlled her, I think you just did something like a hypnotic suggestion. Chrysolth already knew she needed to continue training and you just gave her the extra push she needed to continue. Hypnotizing someone is not taking total control of them like you did with Stoth. Hypnosis only works if the one being hypnotized is prepared to do what you suggest."

_:So, I DIDN'T take total control of her mind?:_

"Nope."

_:Huh. That's something we'll have to explore more later on, right now we've got to figure something else out:_

"Like what?"

_:Like how to break this news to Vailira:_

H'cup groaned as he held his head in his hands. That was a conversation he was NOT looking forward to.

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><p><em>That's all for now, another chapter done!<em>

_A/N: Since there are very few mechanical timepieces on Pern, the easiest and cheapest way to tell time is by use of a marked candle. As it burns down, each full mark shows the passage of an hour._

_Oh, and check out a totally AWESOME digital painting of a Night Fury. This is NOT the cute version you saw in the movie! Go to deviantart's website, type in 'night fury' in the search bar and enlarge the first picture. SCARY!  
><em>

_**As always, thanks for reading and please leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**_


	29. Chapter 29 false alarm

**Chapter 29 – False Alarm**

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><p><em>Hello all, it's time for another chapter. <em>

_A/N: Much apologies for the long wait to everyone following this story. Having to adjust to a new job schedule can throw a serious monkey wrench into planning time for writing. Anyway, I originally planned on having the queenflight in this chapter, but after writing this chapter for a while and noticed it went over 3000 words, I decided to split it up. I've got the next chapter almost done, just a few more finishing touches and I'll have it posted in a week or two._

_Again, thank you, Thank You, THANK YOU, to everyone who put this story in their favorites or put it on alert._

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p>Later that week, H'cup and Tannluth were in the lead formation flying up to meet Threadfall over the plains of southern Telgar. Using his superior vision, Tannluth looked ahead toward the leading edge and reported to H'cup what he saw.<p>

_:Straight, even sheets in this Fall, H'cup. No clumps at all:_

"Shards! Okay Tannluth, we'll do this the way we've been practicing."

Tannluth nodded and turned his head so he could have H'cup toss in a chunk of blastrock. As his dragon was chewing the rock to a fine paste, H'cup turned around to get the attention of the blue, brown, and green dragon riders behind him. He used hand signals to send the riders and dragons out ahead of them one at a time to deploy their drones. A blue dragon approached the leading edge and the rider released the drone that was being towed behind them and angled away. Tannluth swallowed the blastrock paste when he saw that the rider and dragon were clear. Almost immediately, the skies were pierced by an ear-rending screech followed by a blinding white ball of plasma which detonated when it contacted the drone, destroying it and all the Thread in a six dragonlength sphere. Tannluth repeated his performance all along the leading edge, never missing a single shot until there was very little Thread left. When they were done, Tannluth flew to some clear air ahead of the leading edge to watch the other dragons finish off the bits of Thread that were left. H'cup raised the visor of his helmet and then reached down and scratched Tannluth's neck affectionately.

"You did good during that Fall, buddy."

_:Thanks. I wish all Threadfall was like this one, this was easy!:_

"Don't get cocky, this is only the first wave! There's more coming after this."

Tannluth snorted, _:Bring it on!:_

H'cup smiled sadly at his friend's words and patted him on his neck. He knew from experience that Tannluth was seething inside. Every instinct his dragon had were screaming at him to fly up and flame away until no more Thread was left, but that would be a waste of his talents. So, they flew out of the way of the rest of the dragons and watched as they flamed the remnants of the silvery menace.

H'cup was also thinking of his new status in the Weyr. R'mart approached him a month ago and proposed that he should be in charge of his own wing. Officially, H'cup's rank was one of the Wingseconds attached to R'mart's wing. Unofficially, he was a Wingleader himself in charge of training and leading two dozen brown, blue, and green riders. Their task was to tow drones behind them and steer them into Threadfall. It was an extremely dangerous duty, but when everyone saw the results of Tannluth's fireballs H'cup had to turn away volunteers. His thoughts were broken when Tannluth sensed a change in the air.

_:Next wave coming, H'cup. Got clumps this time:_

Lowering his visor, H'cup reached into his carisak for a fistful of blastrock and leaned forward over Tannluth's neck.

"Okay buddy, let's get back to work!"

Tannluth roared in agreement as he flew up to meet the new threat.

o0o0o0o

Once Threadfall was over Tannluth and H'cup returned to Telgar to wash off the Thread ash and stench of firestone and blastrock. When Tannluth was satisfied that his hide was sufficiently cleaned, he told H'cup that he was going to fly a few laps around the Weyr and took off in a blur of black wings.

As it was his habit when he was alone, Tannluth took the time to sort through his thoughts. As a Prophet Singer during his previous life back on Earth, he observed and learned about everything around him. Obviously he did the same thing here on Pern from the moment he cracked his shell. Right now he reviewed his memories about how the dragons of Pern flew and mated.

The longer he observed the dragons of the Weyr, the less impressed he became of their flying abilities. He was unfamiliar with dragons from other Weyrs around Pern and didn't know their standards of fitness, but compared to the dragons he knew of back on Earth, in his opinion the dragons of Telgar Weyr could almost be called lazy. Granted, they are creatures of the air and were absolutely vital for Pern's defense against Thread, but they relied far too much on their ability to go _between _to get anywhere. He noticed that the other dragons preferred to launch themselves off the high ledges and rarely took off from the ground. Even when they did, they would get a few dragonlengths off the ground, get their coordinates for their destination, and go _between_. Even when flying Thread, they would emerge from _between_ just in front of the leading edge of Fall and follow it down, gliding as they were flaming it out of the sky. When a new wave came in, they would go _between_ until they were just in front of the new leading edge and follow the same pattern. That way they could fly for half a day and not expend much energy. Tannluth was thankful to whatever gods or spirits that enabled him to have the ability to go _between_, for without it he wouldn't have survived his first contact with Thread. However, he wasn't about to fall into the trap of relying completely on that particular ability to get him and his rider anywhere.

Mating flights were totally different compared to flying against Thread and regular everyday flying. Once a turn, usually at the end of the winter months, the senior queen would come into heat and begin fasting for two weeks. At the end of the two weeks, she would wake up one morning extremely irritable and ravenous. She would want to gorge herself on meat, but any meat in her gut would just slow her down during her flight enabling the interested males to catch her quicker. Her rider must control her appetite and let her drain only the blood of the animals she kills. The blood is consumed to give them the energy needed to last the entire flight. If it's a gold leading the flight, about three or four herdbeasts is sufficient. When the female, either green or gold, has sufficient blood in their system, they would take off with all the interested males in hot pursuit. The chase would last until all the pursuers except one would drop out from exhaustion or a single crafty male would outmaneuver the female and catch her in midflight. The rest of the queens of the Weyr would space their flights out over the rest of the turn.

Green flights were different in that they could take off with having to "blood" only one herdbeast or a couple of wherrys. Of course, their flights don't last nearly as long as a gold flight, maybe lasting a quarter candlemark or less. They also tended to happen within a day or two after one of the queens come into heat. Tannluth theorized that when the queens broadcast their mating lust throughout the Weyr, it sets off the greens that are coming into season themselves. Usually the dragons that pursue the greens are the browns and blues. Bronze dragons rarely go after the greens because they are too large and have a harder time keeping up with the quick turns the greens perform during their flights.

Tannluth was bound and determined that NO male would fly longer than Chrysolth! They wouldn't even get close enough to trick her! _:That's NOT going to happen! Chrysolth is MINE!: _he silently vowed to himself.

o0o0o0o

Over the following months, Tannluth took every opportunity he could to train with Chrysolth. Since she hadn't reached her full growth yet, he went easy with her at the beginning. When he felt that she was used to flying every day, he gradually increased the distance and speed. He mixed up the training sessions with obstacle courses, playing tag in midair, flying zig-zag patterns through narrow canyons at high speed and running long distances on the ground. She went along with it and Tannluth was right there next to her every step of the way, but some of the training didn't meet with her approval.

_:Tannluth, why are we running on the ground? We're dragons! We should be flying, not running!:_

_:I realize that, but this will help stretch and build the muscles that WILL be used for flight:_

_:How? The muscles for flying are in my chest and back while the muscles for running are in my legs. So how does running help my flying?:_

_:It helps in that it builds up your lung capacity which will help increase your endurance while flying. Plus it helps keep your entire body flexible so you can twist and dodge easier during your mating flight:_

_:Oh, okay, that makes a bit more sense:_

Tannluth chuckled and thought to himself, _:Yeah, it helps with your endurance, but it's also for a special surprise I have planned. When you rise for your first mating flight, those other males won't know what to do!:_

o0o0o0o

Tannluth continued to fly with Chrysolth every day that Thread wasn't falling or when their riders required then for duties to the Weyr or the Armorcrafthall. Most of the Weyr's people and dragons ignored that they were spending all their time together but a vocal minority kept lodging complaints about it with R'mart. After several months of this he finally had enough of the grumbling and decided to let H'cup know what was going on. When H'cup returned from a trip to the Armorcrafthall, R'mart met him outside his weyr as he was removing the harness from Tannluth.

"Rider H'cup, can I speak with you for a moment?"

"Sure thing, Weyrleader. Just let me finish getting this harness off of Tannluth and securing it." H'cup pulled the last strap off of Tannluth's back and affectionately slapped him on his side. "I'll see you later buddy, don't stay out too late." Tannluth nodded and took off quickly. Chrysolth soon joined him as she launched herself from one of the upper ledges. They flew up into the clouds and disappeared into the distance. H'cup watched them for a moment and then started securing Tannluth's harness. Heimdall flew down from the ledge he was sitting on and landed on H'cup's shoulder. H'cup scratched his headknob in greeting and went back to securing his harness. R'mart cleared his throat and started speaking as H'cup was working.

"H'cup, I've been hearing some nasty rumors circulating around the Weyr about Tannluth and Chrysolth and it's got me concerned. Do you think it's such a good idea to let them fly together all the time?"

H'cup stopped right in the middle of wrapping up some straps to stare at the Weyrleader. Over the last several months they have managed to build a professional relationship and H'cup got to know him a little better. Right now H'cup could tell that something was bothering him as he didn't like interrogating one of his best Thread fighters, but he had to maintain peace in the Weyr.

"Weyrleader, Tannluth and Chrysolth are friends right now and they like flying together. If you want to check with your dragon, he could talk to Chrysolth and ask her feelings about Tannluth. You will see that..." He was interrupted when R'mart held up his hand.

"Not necessary, H'cup. I already had Branth speak to Chrysolth and I know she is a willing participant in these flights. My concern lies with the other riders of the Weyr and their reactions."

H'cup snorted, "Let me guess, J'kun right?"

R'mart nodded, "He is the most vocal, although he has drummed up some support from some of the other older, more traditional riders of the Weyr. Right now it's just vocal complaints but I'm concerned that it may get physical in the near future. I just wanted to let you know to watch your back."

"I appreciate the warning Weyrleader, and I'll keep an eye out for J'kun and his gang. I'm pretty sure Heimdall will be willing to be an extra set of eyes for me." He reached up and scratched in between Heimdall's eyes as he purred in response. "I'll also tell Tanluth and Chrysolth to be a bit more discreet whenever they depart the Weyr for one of their flights. Will that be good enough?"

"Very good Rider H'cup, I'll leave it in your capable hands then." R'mart nodded once and returned to his office. H'cup's eyes became unfocused as he mentally contacted his dragon and repeated what R'mart told him.

"_What do you think about that, buddy?"_

_:Hrmph! What I'm doing doesn't concern the rider of Histeth, but it seems he's obsessed with Chrysolth and Vailira. Apparently I'm a threat to his plans and since he can't do anything about me he's going to be coming after you. Please be careful and watch out for him H'cup. I CANNOT live without you if anything happens to you!:_

"_I love you too, buddy. Don't worry, I'll be careful and I've got Heimdall watching my back. I'll also let T'yner, S'nar, Ch'ser, Vailira, and the riders of my wing know what's happening with him. Between all of them I'm pretty sure I'll be able to see what's coming and counter it."_

o0o0o0o

Tannluth continued his training flights, only now he was meeting Chrysolth at a place out of sight of the Weyr before training together. He was increasing the intensity of their training since there wasn't much Thread fighting going on during the winter months. It seems that this winter was really harsh and the bitterly cold air froze the Thread in midair whenever it fell over the Northern part of their territory. The only places where viable Thread was still falling was over the extreme Southern part of their territory. Even then, most of the time they flew sweep because a lot of it was already frozen.

He turned his head to regard the golden beauty flying next to him. He was glad that he started advanced training with her while she was still growing as the physical activity altered her growth in several advantageous ways. She was nearly full grown and was almost as large as Rennsith, currently the Weyr's largest dragon, but there were notable physical differences between the two queen dragons. For one, her chest and ribcage was much larger in order to accommodate her massive wing muscles and expanded lungs. Her body shape was different in that she was longer and leaner than the other queens. Her hide was lean and taut and he could see every muscle as she moved. In all, she was everything Tannluth wanted in a mate, a dragon with grace, beauty, and power.

His thoughts turned towards the latest foiled plot against H'cup. Histeth's rider managed to gather a few allies who shared his narrow views on who a queen rider and her dragon should associate with. Unfortunately for them, the Weyrleader already warned H'cup and he had quite a few people along with their fire lizards watching his back. Two days ago, four of them managed to corner him in one of the tunnels. Heimdall was with him and sent a distress call to all his fire lizard friends. The dragon riders were shoving H'cup around a bit when suddenly they were attacked by dozens of hissing, spitting, clawing, extremely annoyed fire lizards. They had no choice but to cover up as much as they could and run for it. H'cup came out of the encounter with a few bruises, but it was nothing compared to the injuries of the riders who attacked him. Tannluth couldn't help but chuckle at the thought of those oh-so-tough dragon riders running away from a bunch of angry fire lizards. Hopefully, they learned their lesson and will leave H'cup alone.

o0o0o0o

It was the second month of the new turn when the Weyr's senior queen, Solth, rose for her mating flight. Of course, everything came to a halt in the Weyr and all the other queens left the area. As soon as it was over and the queens returned, Tannluth went right out again with Chrysolth. This was her second turn since she broke her shell and he knew he didn't have much time before she was ready to rise, so he took every opportunity he had to train with her.

A month and a half later, Chrysolth was showing signs of her rising heat. She was becoming temperamental and was refusing to eat. Tannluth could barely contain his excitement, she would be rising soon! Unfortunately, fate had other plans as early one morning the calm was shattered by a queen's challenge scream. H'cup staggered out of his weyr to look around for his dragon. Tannluth was sitting on a ledge above their weyr's entrance watching the queen pounce on her first herdbeast.

"Tannluth, what's going on? Is it Chrysolth? It's a little early for her to rise, isn't it?"

_:Yes, it is too early. It's not Chrysolth that's rising to mate, it's Rennsith:_

"Rennsith? Shards, I forgot about her!"

_:It's all right, H'cup. She was just a little further along in her cycle, that's all:_

H'cup looked toward the feeding grounds where the queen was partaking in her grisly meal.

"Are you going to follow this flight?" Even though he didn't want to mate with the other female dragons, Tannluth liked to participate in the flights occasionally for practice.

_:No, not this time. I think I've got enough practice, thank you very much. Now I'm ready for the real thing!:_

"When do you think that will be?"

_:In about two months. Chrysolth's the closest in her cycle and will be the next one to rise:_

"Two months? Why so long?"

Tannluth looked directly at his rider. _:Once she completes her flight, Rennsith will carry her eggs inside her for three months before she lays them and then it will be five weeks before they hatch. Nesting queen dragons are extremely protective of their eggs and won't allow any other dragon near them. If Chrysolth flies tomorrow, Rennsith will still have eggs on the hatching ground by the time Chrysolth is ready to lay them. She won't have anywhere to lay her eggs since Telgar has only one hatching ground and queen dragons HAVE to lay their eggs or they will die!:_

H'cup looked at his dragon in horror. "What can we do Tannluth? If Chrysolth does fly soon, do we have to go to another Weyr so she can lay her eggs?"

_:No, that won't be necessary, Chrysolth will lay her eggs here. You see, unlike green dragons, the queens can control their mating urges to a certain extent. Chrysolth's mating cycle will just go into regression for two months. After that time, her cycle will start up again and she'll be ready to rise:_

"Wow, I never knew that. Will we be going through this every turn?"

_:No, just this time. Since this is the first time for Chrysolth, the other queens will adjust accordingly:_

Tannluth and H'cup were watching Rennsith finish her first herdbeast and was pouncing on the second one when Chrysolth and Vailira emerged from their weyr. The gold dragon was harnessed for flight and her rider strapped securely on her back. They barely cleared the cave entrance when Chrysolth spread her wings, leaped off the ground, and immediately went _between_. Tannluth and H'cup watched the spot they disappeared from for a few moments, then both of them sighed and went back into their weyr.

It was going to be a long two months.

* * *

><p><em>Well, there it is, another chapter done!<em>

_A/N: I tried to close a few plot holes that never appeared in canon and very few times in other fan fiction. The fact that you can't have two queen dragons in close proximity during their mating flight was shown in Dragonquest, but what about nesting queens? Most Weyrs have only one hatching ground and if there's eggs on the sands no other dragon, much less a queen trying to lay her eggs, can come close to them since the nesting queen is so territorial. _

_**As always, thanks for reading and please leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**_


	30. Chapter 30 catch me if you can part 1

**Chapter 30 – Catch Me If You Can Part 1**

* * *

><p><em>Hello everyone, it's time for another chapter. <em>

_A/N: Well, here is part one of the long anticipated mating flight. If you haven't guessed by now, Tannluth is a very different dragon of Pern, therefore his mating flight is going to be something never seen before. There are several possibilities that I went through before I worked out a scenario that I liked. He can catch Chrysolth after a short flight (boring). I can go for drama and have another dragon get sneaky or lucky and catch her (nah). Or I can have something totally different happen. I know this might offend some Pern traditionalists but hey, it's fan fiction! I like what happens and hopefully you all will like it as well._

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

* * *

><p>H'cup and Tannluth stood on the ledge for most of that morning, watching and listening to the dragons chasing after the queen and waiting for the return of Chrysolth and Vailira. As usual when he wasn't chasing after a queen or a green, Tannluth provided occasional commentary to his rider as to what was happening during the flight. He was silent during the first part and spoke when the flight lasted a little more than three quarters of a candlemark.<p>

_:The first bronze is dropping out now:_

"Which one is it?"

_:Which one ALWAYS drops out first?:_

H'cup snorted in amusement and nodded his head showing that he knew. A short while later a dot in the sky grew larger into the unmistakable form of Histeth who winged his way tiredly over to his weyr. H'cup looked over at Rennsith's weyr to see an angry J'kun stomp outside to attend to his exhausted dragon. He looked over his shoulder to where H'cup and Tannluth were standing. There was no mistaking the look of pure loathing he sent their way. Both H'cup and Tannluth returned his gaze with a look of bored indifference. When J'kun entered his weyr and was out of sight, H'cup turned to his dragon.

"Hmmm, I don't think he likes us very much. If looks could kill, we'd be drinking mead in Valhalla right now."

Tannluth gave a short bark of laughter. _:I'm not sure if a death glare counts as dying in glorious battle, especially coming from a tunnel-snake like Histeth's rider!: _That comment had H'cup joining his dragon in laughter. The two continued to converse quietly as they watched the bronze dragons return to the Weyr one by one. A little over two candlemarks later, Tannluth announced that it was over.

"Who caught the queen?"

_:Zenquith. He's the same dragon who has caught her every time she has risen. From what I've heard him and his rider followed Rennsith and her rider here when she was transferred from Benden. Their riders are weyrmates and have been together ever since:_

"So, Zenquith and Rennsith, your sire and dam, are BOTH Benden dragons? Shards, it's no wonder why you're so big!"

Tannluth tilted his head to the side in an approximation of a shrug. He was now, by far, bigger than any brown dragon in Telgar Weyr. Amazingly, he was even slightly larger than most of the Oldtimer bronzes. The only dragons in the Weyr bigger than him were the bronzes from Rennsith's clutches and of course the queens.

_:I suppose that may be one reason. Also, there's no way to know if combining what was left of my old body with the embryo of a Pern dragon affected my size in any way. I may not be the biggest dragon in the Weyr, but I'm fairly certain I'm the strongest. That's all that really matters:_

H'cup nodded at his friend's reasoning and turned to walk back to his weyr. It would be several candlemarks before Zenquith and Rennsith returned and even longer before Chrysolth came back from wherever she and Vailira went to. Thinking of Tannluth's future mate, he stopped to ask him a question.

"Hey buddy, I've got a question for you. Why didn't you leave with Chrysolth? Didn't you want to keep her company?"

_:Usually I do, but not in this instance:_

"What do you mean?"

_:H'cup, I've seen how moody Vailira gets sometimes, do you like to be around her when she's that way?:_ H'cup shivered involuntarily. _:Exactly! Now imagine that mood being twice as bad:_

"Aw, come on, you're exaggerating! It can't be that bad."

_:You're wrong, it's worse. Think about it, Chrysolth was all set for her first mating flight. She was beaten to it by one, maybe two days by Rennsith. That's got to be extremely frustrating for her. Remember that she hasn't eaten anything for two sevendays. I'm sure she's taking out her frustration on some wild wherries and herdbeasts right now. Not to mention that she will be feeling the effects of her rising heat for the rest of the day. By tomorrow she should be okay but for the rest of today I'm just going to keep my distance:_

"That scary, huh?"

_:I'd rather face Thread all by myself, it's safer:_

o0o0o0o

Zenquith and Rennsith returned to the Weyr around noon and Chrysolth winged her way in almost before dusk. All the dragons went straight to their weyrs and weren't seen until the next day and then it was back to their usual routine. Tannluth continued to train with Chrysolth, although he now did it just to keep their edge. Strangely enough, he started noticing another dragon doing some extracurricular flying and told H'cup what Histeth was doing that evening.

"What do you think he's trying to do?"

_:I'm pretty sure that his rider is trying to get him to catch Chrysolth during her mating flight, although he is a bit reluctant to do some extra flying. Histeth's rider has to go with him every time he goes out to keep him motivated. Even so, all he does is fly laps around the Weyr:_

"Do you think he'll succeed in catching Chrysolth?"

Tannluth snorted in derision. _:Not a chance. He may get a little more endurance out of it, but it's far too late for the exercise to affect his body like it did mine and Chrysolth's. He'll just get tired later on in the flight, that's all:_

Other than the extra flying done by the three dragons, the routine of the Weyr didn't change over the next two months and time flew by fairly quickly. Tannluth realized the time for Chrysolth's flight was getting close and started easing off their training flights so that she wouldn't be overly tired when it came time for her to rise. She was becoming very irritable and by the end of the two months she actually drove Tannluth out of their shared weyr. That evening Tannluth was lounging on the ledge above their weyr when H'cup walked up to him.

"Hey buddy, girlfriend kick you out?"

_:Yep:_

"You're not mad?"

_:Nope:_

"How come?"

_:Because tomorrow's the day:_

H'cup nodded and a look of relief came over him. "I figured the time was getting pretty close but are you sure? How can you tell?"

_:By her scent. She smells the same way the other queens did just before they rose:_

"Interesting. I wondered how the bronzes always knew when to blood their kills before a flight. You ready for tomorrow?"

_:As I'll ever be. Relax H'cup, by tomorrow afternoon everything will be fine. You'll see:_

"Okay buddy, I'll see you tomorrow." H'cup reached up and rubbed his muzzle while the dragon purred in pleasure. H'cup smiled at him and walked off the ledge and into his weyr. He paused at the queen's couch and saw Chrysolth twitching in her sleep.

"_Looks like she's ready for tomorrow as well. Fly high, fast, and far tomorrow young queen." _He pushed aside the partition to their bedroom and sat down on the edge of the bed to remove his leg. As he was doing that Vailira wrapped her arms around him from behind and gave him a kiss on his cheek.

"Chrysolth was very angry at Tannluth for some reason today and drove him away. It's getting close to her time, isn't it?" she asked.

H'cup nodded. "Tannluth is pretty sure it will be tomorrow. He says her scent is the same as the other queens when they rose."

Vailira was quiet, but nodded her head. H'cup turned in her embrace and kissed her on her forehead. "Don't worry, Tannluth has it all planned out. He's trained Chrysolth well. I'm pretty sure that none of the other bronzes have a chance of catching her."

"I'm not worried about the other bronzes, I'm just worried about one."

"Do you mean Histeth?" Vailira nodded. "Psssh! He's got about as much of a chance of catching Chrysolth as him flying to the Red Star without going _between_!" Jade and Heimdall both gave a fearful, angry squawk before popping away. "Oops, sorry guys. Anyway, Tannluth says he has absolutely NO chance at catching her so don't worry about it."

Vailira visibly relaxed and sighed as she settled down next to him under their sleeping furs. H'cup put his arm around her shoulders, kissed the top of her head, and started at the ceiling for a few minutes before dropping off to sleep himself. He slept soundly through the night until Tannluth roused him with a gentle mental summons.

_:H'cup, you need to wake up:_

"_Hunh? Whuzzat? Tannluth? What time is it?"_

_:Just after dawn. The other bronzes are blooding their kills now and their riders will be at your weyr soon. You need to get yourself and Vailira ready:_

"_Okay, thanks buddy." _Sitting up and stretching, he reached to the side of the bed for his leg and pants. Strapping on the leg and buckling his pants, he looked to his side where his weyrmate was sleeping peacefully. Nudging her shoulder he told her, "Vailira, you need to get up, Tannluth told me that the bronze dragons are blooding their kills and Chrysolth will rise this morning. The other bronze riders will be here shortly."

Vailira blinked her eyes open, stretched, yawned, and turned her head to look H'cup in the eye. Sleepily she asked, "Today is the day?"

"Yep." With a smirk he leaned closer and whispered in her ear, "Don't bother putting on a lot of clothes, you won't be needing them later."

Vailira grabbed her pillow and started bashing him on the side of the head. H'cup didn't defend himself against her assault, he just fell onto the bed laughing. Getting up, he went to the closet to put on a shirt as Vailira finished getting dressed. As soon as they were done, they both stepped into the outer weyr where there was a small group of riders waiting for them. At the front of the group was the one person they least liked in all of Telgar Weyr.

"Well little queenrider, it looks like today is the day that you'll be mine."

Vailira stalked right up to J'kun and started poking him in the chest.

"Get one thing through that thick skull of yours, J'kun. Even if by some miracle your runt manages to catch Chrysolth I will NEVER be yours! Granted, you may have me during the time Chrysolth's mating lust affects me, but as soon as it's over I. WILL. BE. GONE!" All during the time of her tirade, she was poking J'kun in the chest and backing him up each time she hit him. By the time she was finished she was nearly shouting and J'kun was backed up against one of the walls.

She would have said more to him but Chrysolth decided it was time to wake up. Vailira gasped at the feelings she received through her link with the queen dragon. She tried running to her side, but Chrysolth was already out on the ledge, hissing and snarling at the bronze dragons gathered on the upper ledges around her. With a defiant scream to her potential suitors, she dove off the ledge and flew quickly to the herdbeast pens. H'cup, Vailira, and the others ran out onto the ledge just as the queen dragon pounced onto her first victim. Her weight broke the herdbeast's back, killing it instantly and then she used her claws to rip open its belly for good measure. It looked like she was getting ready to feast on the herdbeast and H'cup was wondering why Vailira wasn't preventing her from doing that. He looked at Vailira and noticed that she had a dazed look on her face. He grabbed her by her shoulders and spun her so she was facing him. He shook her a little to make sure she was paying attention.

"Control her! You must not let her eat!"

Vailira blinked a few times to clear her head then narrowed her eyes. She looked down at Chrysolth just as she was about to take a bite...

"_STOP! Don't you DARE eat that, Chrysolth!" _The queen dragon lifted her head and screamed in defiance.

_:LEAVE ME ALONE! Can't you understand that I'm HUNGRY! I need to eat!:_

"_I understand you're hungry, but you need the blood, no meat!"_

_:Blood won't satisfy my hunger, I need meat!: _She screamed in defiance again.

"_You WILL listen to me! Blood only, no meat!"_

The battle of wills went on for a few more minutes with Chrysolth shaking her head and screaming while Vailira was staring at her defiant queen and clenching her fists. Eventually, everyone could tell that Vailira was wearing the queen down. When Chrysolth finally submitted to her rider's will, she grabbed the carcass and tore a hole in its throat. When the blood came gushing out, she lifted it to her mouth and started drinking greedily. When the carcass was drained dry, she pounced on a second herdbeast, breaking its back and killing it instantly like she did the first one. Vailira had to sternly remind her to only blood the carcass and not eat the meat. Chrysolth grumbled quietly but obeyed her rider's instructions. When she was done with the second, she went for a third and promptly started to blood the carcass without any reminders from Vailira. In the middle of her third kill, her hide started glowing with the extra energy her body was building up. The gathered males saw this and started humming in anticipation. Most queens took flight after their third kill, so they prepared themselves to spring after her. She dropped the drained carcass and was going to issue her challenge to the gathered males when a single dragon voice cut through her mating lust induced haze. She stood still and looked around until she found the source.

_:Wait, don't fly yet:_

Whenever dragons used their mental abilities to speak, every dragon in the weyr could hear them. It takes a little more effort, but dragons could actually speak to other dragons on the other side of the world. It took a while to learn how to do it, but Tannluth figured out a way to speak to just one dragon at a time without being heard by others. He was now using that ability to have a private chat with Chrysolth. Fortunately, he managed to teach it to Chrysolth as well.

_:Tannluth? Why can't I fly? I feel like I have to get away!:_

_:And you will, my beautiful queen, but not just yet. First, you'll need to blood two more kills:_

_:Two more? But I have enough now!:_

_:Trust me, you'll need it:_

Meanwhile, the gathered dragons and riders were looking on the scene with confusion. None of the dragons could hear Tannluth's and Chrysolth's exchange and the only riders who could hear them were H'cup and Vailira. They were confused as well, but kept their thoughts to themselves. When Chrysolth pounced on a fourth herdbeast, the riders thought it was a bit unusual, but figured that the queen needed the extra energy. When she was done and went for the fifth herdbeast, J'kun finally had enough and grabbed Vailira by the arm and spun her around.

"All right, that's it! Just what is it that you're planning? What kind of game are you playing?"

She wrenched her arm out of his grip and shoved him back. "Don't touch me! I have NO idea what is going on! Chrysolth hasn't eaten in two sevendays, maybe she needs the extra energy."

"Don't be ridiculous, all the queens fast for two sevendays before a flight and they only require three sometimes four herdbeasts for a flight but NEVER five! You've got something planned, I know it!"

"You know NOTHING! Now I can't do anything about you being here today J'kun, but after this is over STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!"

Vailira's anger at the obstinate bronze rider was so great that it distracted the queen from her single-minded purpose. Raising her bloodstained muzzle, she looked directly at the group of riders gathered on the ledge.

_:Vailira, are you all right?:_

"_I'm fine, love. Just dealing with an idiot, that's all."_

_:You sure?:_

"_I'm sure. Go ahead and finish what you're doing."_

Chrysolth started at her rider for a few moments as if she was searching for something. When she was satisfied that everything was all right, she lifted the carcass to her mouth and finished her grisly meal. Throwing the drained carcass to the side, she lifted her head and roared her challenge to the surrounding males.

_:You want me? You think you are worthy of me? NONE of you are worthy of me unless you can catch me! And don't think I will make this easy! I am Chrysolth of Telgar! You will have to WORK if you want to be called my mate!:_

All the bronzes could see her muscles tensing for an upward leap and they readied themselves to chase after her. However, before she could spring aloft, she was interrupted by that solitary dragon voice again.

_:Wait, don't fly:_

She blinked, _:Don't fly? What do you mean, don't fly? It's called a mating FLIGHT so I'll have to fly!:_

_:And you will fly, but not just yet. First, run as fast as you can along the ground away from us:_

_:Run away?:_

_:Yes, it will confuse the males for a few moments, then you can fly. It will give you a good head start:_

The thought of these big, powerful bronzes looking confused at her actions had Chrysolth laughing for a few moments. She lifted her wings as if she was going to take flight but then snapped them firmly to her sides and took off at a ground-eating gallop at a pace that would rival some of Pern's best runnerbeasts. The males blinked confusedly at her actions, they were ready to fly after her and now she was running? What was she doing? When she was halfway across the bowl, she spread her wings and shot out of the bowl. As she passed over the outer ledge of the Weyr, she let out a roar that sounded suspiciously like a laugh. The bronzes reacted as soon as they saw her wings spreading and took off after her. Strangely, it was Histeth who was the leader of the pack of pursuing males.

All the riders watched them for a while until they turned and went into the weyr to wait out the rest of the flight. H'cup remained behind a little longer watching the group of dragons flit across the sky. When he could no longer see them, he turned to go into the weyr himself and stopped when he saw a black shape sitting on the ledge above him.

"Umm, Tannluth, buddy, aren't you supposed to be _flying_ after her right now?"

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><p><em>Uh-oh, what does that sneaky black dragon have in mind now? Check back in two weeks for the conclusion to this chapter.<em>

_**As always, thanks for reading and please leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**_


	31. Chapter 31 catch me if you can part 2

**Chapter 31 – Catch Me If You Can Part 2**

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><p><em>Hello everyone, here is the chapter you've all been eagerly waiting for. Hope you all like it because I sure did.<em>

_Thank you one and all for your reviews. I sincerely appreciate each and every one of them._

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p>Previously:<p>

_All the riders watched them for a while until they turned and went into the weyr. H'cup remained behind a little longer watching the group of dragons flit across the sky. When he could no longer see them, he turned to go into the weyr himself and stopped when he saw a black shape sitting on the ledge above him._

"_Umm, Tannluth, buddy, aren't you supposed to be flying after her right now?"_

o0o0o0o

The black dragon did not answer his rider's question. Instead, he stayed rooted to his spot on the ledge, his eyes fixed on a point in the sky where H'cup last saw the group of bronze dragons chasing Chrysolth. H'cup turned to see what Tannluth was looking at. The sky over the weyr was clear, but there were large clouds in the distance. H'cup couldn't see the dragons and figured they were flying amongst the clouds. He turned back to his dragon to ask him again what he was doing.

"Tannluth, what are you doing sitting on the ground? You're supposed to be flying after her!" Tannluth kept his eyes on the sky as he responded to his rider.

_:Patience, H'cup. I've got everything under control. It's all going according to my plan:_

H'cup waved his arms. "Your plan? Does your plan involve letting another bronze catching Chrysolth? Because that is what is going to happen if you keep sitting on the ground and not flying after her! The others are far out of sight right now and I don't see how you are going to catch up with them unless you are planning to go _between_ to get ahead of them!"

Tannluth turned his head to regard H'cup. _:H'cup, I said I've got everything under control and I mean it. I am NOT about to let another male catch Chrysolth after all the work I did to train her and myself. I am confident in her abilities to keep from getting caught just as I am confident in my ability to catch her. And no, I will not go _between_ to catch up with the group. Although I am one of the few dragons on Pern that could do it without a rider, it would be a very foolish thing for me to do so with a group of dragons during their mating flight flying nearby:_

"Oh? Why is that?"

_:You remember what is needed to go _between_:_ H'cup nodded. _:Obviously, you need a very clear image of your destination or you could end up rematerializing inside something solid which would be a very bad thing for both dragon and rider. The only thing on Pern that would be in the airspace above a solid object is another dragon. Dragons have an innate inner sense that detects whenever and __wherever another dragon is coming out of _between_. That way they could avoid being in that space so a dragon could safely reappear. Unfortunately, that sense is lost during the mating flight chase:_

"But couldn't you set your destination a little ways away from them? That way there's no chance of one of them flying into your destination coordinates."

_:Theoretically, that could work but not so in this case. Remember how fast they were flying around? Also remember that it takes eight heartbeats to come out of _between_. I could set a destination some distance from them, but it's possible that a dragon could change course, cover that distance, and fly across my destination point just when I am coming out of _between_. Having two dragons occupying the same space at the same time would be either excruciatingly painful or instantly fatal to one or both of them. Even if they did survive, they are liable to go _between_ to escape the pain:_

H'cup swallowed hard as he tried to get that mental image out of his head. "You've thought about this a lot, haven't you?"

Tannluth tilted his head to the side in an approximation of a shrug. _:I suppose it's from me being part Prophet Singer from my old life back on Earth. I'll always be questioning things and learning about the world around me:_

H'cup was going to ask another question when Tannluth's eyes suddenly widened and were whirling orange. He then turned his head to look in the direction that the other dragons flew off to. H'cup became alarmed when he heard the other dragons in the weyr bugling in distress.

"Tannluth, what is it? What's happening?"

_:The bronze dragons are in pain! Something is hurting them!:_

"In pain? What can hurt them during a mating flight?"

Tannluth crouched down and spread his wings. _:I don't know, but I'm sure going to find out and put a stop to it!: _He then sprang up with a mighty leap and took off so fast he stirred up the dirt on the ledge. H'cup blinked and coughed a few times to clear the dust out of his eyes and throat. When they were clear and he looked in the direction Tannluth took off toward, he couldn't believe what he was seeing. Tannluth was flying away at a speed H'cup couldn't believe was possible for any dragon of Pern. His entire body was held straight as an arrow and his legs were tucked firmly to his sides. What was really amazing was that his wings were a constant blur of motion. He was flying away at a steep angle and still accelerating! If he had any doubts about Tannluth catching up to the group, this display of his flying prowess certainly dispelled them! He sent a silent _'Good luck, buddy'_ to his dragon. Tannluth didn't respond, but H'cup felt his love and reassurance returned along their mental link. Looking one more time at the rapidly shrinking form of the black dragon, he turned and went into the weyr with the rest of the dragonriders to wait out the rest of the flight.

Tannluth meanwhile, was trying and failing to reign in his rising anger. This was supposed to be a joyous occasion! A celebration of life, of renewal! Instead, dragons are getting hurt as if they're fighting Thread! The more he thought about it, the angrier he got until his eyes were blazing crimson. He kept up his frantic pace until the group of bronzes and one queen came into sight. As he got closer, he could see that Chrysolth was leading the group in his direction and was going vertical. Tannluth let them get closer until they went straight overhead then he angled upwards to fall in directly behind them. He slowed down slightly so he could fall back a bit and better assess what was happening. He could see some of the males in the lead bumping into each other with occasional roars of frustration intermingled with cries of pain.

_:Just what in Faranth's name is going on?:_

Just when he finished that thought a few drops of warm moisture landed on his snout. Instinctively, he stuck his tongue out and licked them off only to immediately spit it out once he tasted what it was.

_:Dragon blood? Why would dragons be bleeding during a mating flight?:_

He picked up the pace again and closed with the group. As he passed dragons in the back of the pack, he could see some of them had long, thin gouges in their hides that were leaking dark green, almost black blood. He recognized an injured dragon that was one of his friends, a bronze from one of Rennsith's previous clutches. He pulled alongside and noticed the bronze was quivering in rage.

_:What happened to you, Joreth?:_

Tannluth could tell that Joreth was livid, but not at him. He snapped, _:Histeth happened! He's gone crazy and wouldn't let anyone else get past him. When other dragons started flying around him, he extended his talons and started clawing at everyone who got near!:_

_:Are you badly hurt?:_

_:No, and neither is anyone else. I've had worse scores from Thread so this is more of an irritant, really. But he's disrupting the flight! Chrysolth is getting extremely angry! She has to keep doubling back because Histeth is slowing everyone down!:_

As if to prove his point, Chrysolth gave an angry roar, doubled back, folded her wings, and dove down straight towards the massed group of male dragons. All of them saw what she was doing and veered away from her flight path so they could angle in behind her. That is, every male veered away except for one. Histeth decided to hover in her path with his forepaws extended as if to catch her as she flew by. Tannluth looked back with horror when he saw what he had in mind.

_:Joreth, look at Histeth! What does he think he's doing? Is he insane? If he tries to latch on to Chrysolth going by him at full speed it will rip his forepaws off! Doesn't he realize that?:_

Joreth shook his head sadly. _:This is the third time he's tried this. We've tried telling him to stop, but he won't listen. Fortunately, he gets out of her way each time he does it:_

Tannluth's eyes widened as the distance between the queen and the bronze got smaller and smaller. Histeth kept hovering in Chrysolth's flight path until she let loose with an ear-splitting roar. He finally realized his predicament and folded his wings to dive out of her way. Chrysolth passed so close to him that her slipstream disrupted his flight and sent him tumbling through the sky a few times. By the time he recovered, Chrysolth was far ahead of the group and Histeth was somewhere in the middle of the pack. Unfortunately, this put him right next to Tannluth. Histeth's eyes sparked red in rage and he roared at him in anger.

_:YOU! This is all your fault! You made Chrysolth this way! She was supposed to be MINE but you made it so she was impossible to catch!:_

_:Of course I did! I decided at her hatching that Chrysolth was to be my mate and I took steps to insure that I would be the only one to catch her! Besides, even if I didn't, I sincerely doubt that she would consent to mating with a weakling runt like you!:_

Histeth blinked a few times. _:...Weakling?...Runt?...why you...you...rrrRRRAAARRGHH!: _With a savage roar, he extended his claws and swiped at Tannluth. Fortunately, Tannluth was prepared for this and flicked away so all that Histeth's claws cut through was empty air. However, Histeth wasn't done with him yet. Forgetting all about Chrysolth, he turned instead to chasing after Tannluth in order to try and take out his frustrations on him. Tannluth saw him coming and used his superior speed and maneuverability to keep out of his range. Histeth attempted to claw Tannluth several times, but each time Tannluth dodged him. He would have gotten away clean from Histeth's attack if there weren't other dragons sharing the sky with him.

While dodging away from Histeth, it brought him closer to the formation of dragons chasing after Chrysolth. In order to avoid a midair collision, Tannluth banked straight up over the group of dragons. Unfortunately, this bled off his airspeed allowing Histeth to catch up to him and Tannluth could see him coming closer out of the corner of his eye. There was no way to avoid his claws, so he turned the thick armored scales on his back toward him. Histeth made a swipe at the black dragon, but his claws were just scraping along the surface of his scales. Roaring in frustration, he tried digging in harder and two of his claws managed to get snagged under an edge of one of the larger plate scales on his back. Histeth curled his claws inward and got a roar of pain from Tannluth when the claws dug into his flesh.

_:OW! Ow, ow, ow, ow, OW! GET OFF OF ME! GET OFF RIGHT NOW!:_

_:NO! Not unless you drop out from the flight!: _

Tannluth had just about enough of this foolish dragon! Lifting his wings high, he snapped them down and at the same time scooped the air downward with the sails on his tail. It was a maneuver that no other dragon of Pern but Tannluth could perform and Histeth was flipped off his back. Unfortunately for him, his claws were wedged in so tightly under Tannluth's scales that they were ripped out by the roots. Histeth tumbled through the air a few times, roaring in pain and clutching his bleeding digits. When he recovered, he looked around and noticed that Tannluth was quickly heading toward the group of dragons chasing the queen so there was very little chance of catching up to him. He also noticed the formation was a long way away and there was almost no chance of catching up to them as well. With no other options available to him, the beaten dragon moaned in frustration and pain while he winged his way tiredly back to Telgar Weyr.

Meanwhile, Tannluth flexed his back and wings to try and assess the damage done to him. His movements weren't hindered at all and the claws merely felt like a splinter under his skin. Since it wasn't getting worse and was just mildly irritating, he figured he could fly well enough right now and deal with it later. At the moment, he had a queen to catch!

Turning his attention back to the mating flight, he noticed that the pace had picked up considerably. Without the bronze midget slowing the rest of them down, the males were now able to truly stretch their wings in pursuit of the queen. Since Chrysolth was still able to maintain a comfortable lead, he had a few moments to consider what he was going to do. At this point, the flight has gone on long enough so that a normal mating would result in a fairly large clutch of eggs. However, Tannluth wasn't a 'normal' dragon and just like himself, he wanted this particular queenflight to be unique. His decision made, he narrowed his eyes in determination and set off after the group. Pushing himself to his top speed he quickly rejoined the chase group and was soon passing the stragglers. Weaving his way through the pursuing bronzes, he soon found himself at the front of the pack. He continued with his top speed until he closed the distance between himself and the fleeing queen.

Chrysolth sensed that a dragon was intruding into her airspace, so she looked over her shoulder and was shocked to see one of the males almost upon her! Even though her mind was fairly hazy at this time due to the massive amount of hormones raging through her system, she was still able to recognize this particular dragon as the one she wanted. Even so, she wasn't going to make it easy for him, she was a queen dragon and had a reputation to uphold!

Pumping her wings harder, she was determined to pull ahead of ALL her pursuers! When she looked back a second time she was again surprised to see that the black dragon was not only matching her speed, he was also closer! She bent at the waist and twisted her wings which started a spinning descent. Halfway into the spin, she snapped her wings open, leveled out for a brief moment, then twisted her wings in the opposite direction and spun the other way. When she was done, she looked back to see that she lost half of her pursuers but she also saw that the black dragon was still shadowing her.

Roaring in rage and frustration, she doubled her efforts in dodging this black nuisance. She spun, twisted, dove, stalled, and spun again all to no avail, the black dragon stuck close to her throughout it all. And he was getting even closer! It was when she flattened out to begin another set of evasions when it happened.

He touched her.

This wasn't an accidental bump that occasionally happens on nearly every mating flight. No, this was a long, slow, deliberate caress that went from between her shoulder blades to the base of her tail. She didn't know what body part he used to touch her, the back of a claw perhaps, but it sent a slight shiver through her entire body. She shook it off and resumed her efforts in dodging the persistent black dragon. However, she was unsuccessful in her efforts. Every time she leveled out to perform another maneuver, the black dragon would edge in and touch her in some way. He would stroke her with the back of a claw, nudge her with a wingtip, or caress her with the tip of his tail. Each and every touch would send delicious shivers through her body.

When this happened four more times, Chrysolth started looking at this male in a new light. The main reason for mating flights was to weed out the slowest and weakest males until only the strongest remained. The one that was able to catch her would be the best sire for her offspring. Since this dragon was able to keep up with her despite her best efforts to evade him meant that he was VERY strong, so on his next pass she sent a clear signal of her willingness to mate with him. When she returned to level flight after another series of maneuvers, she raised her tail and arched her neck. However, instead of latching on, he continued to stroke her. His unwillingness to mate was getting her frustrated. Finally, she had enough and turned to scream at him.

_:What are you DOING? What are you WAITING for? Catch me already!:_

_:No:_

She blinked. _:No?:_

_:No. I've shown that I could catch you at any time, thus proving that I'm worthy of being your mate. Now, I want you to prove that you're worthy of being MY mate:_

_:Prove my worth? Why should I have to prove my worth to you? I'm a queen dragon, you males are the ones who are supposed to compete for me!:_

_:That's true, you're a queen dragon and one I greatly desire as my mate, but you are one of many other queens. However, I am the only black dragon on all of Pern:_

Chrysolth scoffed, _:You think too highly of yourself if you think that I should compete for you! Perhaps I'll just choose another one of the bronzes chasing me!:_

_:Yes, that is your prerogative, you could choose another, but that may be a tad bit difficult. Apparently, the other males decided the chase went on too long and they all went home back to Telgar Weyr:_

Chrysolth looked around and saw that Tannluth indeed spoke the truth, they were all alone in the sky.

_:Very well, it looks like I have no other choice. How do I prove my worth to you?:_

_:It's very simple, my queen. All you have to do is catch me:_

Chrysolth blinked again, this one was full of surprises! Catch him? Ridiculous! Or, maybe not. After all, he did outlast every other dragon chasing her. And the goal of the flight is still the same, to find the best available mate. Well, here he is, the best available, but now instead of the one being chased she will have to chase after him. Her decision made, she tried angling in and reaching out to him only to have the black dragon flick away from her.

_:Ah, ah, ah, did you think it would be that easy, my queen? I said catch me, not reach out and touch me! Now, stretch those lovely wings of yours and catch me!:_

Tannluth roared in challenge and Chrysolth roared back in acceptance, and so began the strangest mating flight ever seen in the history of Pern. Granted, there have been quite a few where it was just the male and female in the air together, but it has always been the male _chasing_ the female, never the other way around. Chrysolth locked her eyes on the black form fleeing in front of her and pushed herself to speeds she never reached before. Tannluth began twisting and turning during his high speed flight in an effort to confuse her, but she remained close to his tail. However, no matter what she tried, she wasn't able to close the distance and catch him. She realized that Tannluth was too strong and too maneuverable to catch in a straight-on flight, so in order to win her mate she was going to have to be sneaky about it.

Flying close to some clouds, Chrysolth waited until Tannluth was slightly ahead of her and banking around one of the taller clouds. When he went around the cloud and was out of sight, she ducked into the cloud and went vertical. She flew blindly for a few seconds then broke out into bright sunlight at the top of the cloud. She stayed close to the top of the cloud, ready to duck back inside in case she was spotted by Tannluth. Fortunately for her, the black dragon didn't see her. In fact, he seemed to be frantically searching in the last place he saw her. Seeing her chance, she flew around to the opposite side of the cloud and waited for Tannluth to pass below her. With the sun over her right shoulder, she angled down so she was above and slightly to the right of him.

Tannluth, meanwhile, was nearly panicking hoping he didn't lose the queen. He doubled back to search for her where he last saw her only to find empty sky. He was banking around a cloud with the sun over his shoulder when a movement on the cloud caught his eye. The shape was getting larger and was coming up at him through the cloud! It seemed it was going to collide with him so he angled up and away, only to feel talons wrap around his legs and a long golden neck twine with his. He laughed at himself when he realized that he reacted to the queen's shadow! He gave up when he realized he was now truly caught. The triumphant queen's shout echoed loudly in his mind.

_:GOT YOU!:_

_:That you have, my queen:_

_:You are the most frustrating, insolent, arrogant dragon I've ever met in my life!:_

_:Thank you, I resemble that remark:_

Chrysolth snorted in amusement. _:You are also now my mate:_

_:That I am, my queen:_

_:I notice that you keep calling me that. Why do you do that?:_

_:I've noticed that humans use terms of endearment with each other and I thought I'd try it with you. Why? Don't you like it?:_

She considered it for a moment before she replied._ :Yes, I think I actually do like it, but what can I call you? Of course I like your name and 'my mate' seems a bit generic, but is there something you had in mind?:_

_:You can call me whatever you like, my queen:_

Chrysolth was silent for a few more moments before she said, _:I think I will call you 'my lord':_

_:My lord? Where did you hear that term?:_

_:From a story Vailira read to me several times. I don't remember too much of it, but it evoked strong emotions in my rider when she read it to me:_

_:'My lord'. I like that, I really do. So, what do you desire, my queen?:_

_:What I desire should be obvious, but to accomplish that we need to switch positions. You're not going to fly away from me if I let you go, are you?:_

_:No, you caught me fair and square so I am now your mate. I'm not going anywhere:_

Chrysolth nodded and released her hold on the black dragon. When they switched places, Chrysolth raised her neck and tail as Tannluth slid in behind her. As he locked talons with her and twined his neck around hers, they both started humming in anticipation.

_:What do you desire, my queen?:_

_:I want you to fly me, my lord:_

_:As you wish, my queen:_

Their twin roars of ecstasy filled the skies as they consummated their first mating flight.

Meanwhile, far below in Telgar Weyr, their riders were similarly engaged.

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><p><em>Well, for better or for worse, that's another chapter finished. <em>

_A/N: Obviously, this goes so far beyond canon that it's not even funny, but I hope I've done a good enough job in previous chapters showing that Tannluth is an entirely unique dragon of Pern._

_As far as the dialog between dragons during the flight, I'd like to believe that since dragons are intelligent creatures capable of thought and speech that there shouldn't be a reason to not speak during a flight. I tried showing that there would be friends (Joreth), enemies (Histeth), and rivals (all the others) along with the banter and dialog between them._

_**As always, thanks for reading and please leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**_


	32. Chapter 32 aftermath

**Chapter 32 – Aftermath**

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><p><em>Happy New Year everyone. Here's the next chapter of the story.<em>

_Thank you everyone for all your reviews of the last chapter. I really appreciate each and every one of them._

_**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**_

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><p>"Rider H'cup, can I speak with you for a moment? It's a matter of utmost importance."<p>

H'cup blinked as he slowly became aware of his surroundings. He noticed from the light coming through the hangings that it was already mid-morning and that the Weyrleader was outside his weyr and needed to talk to him. Blinking the sleep out of his eyes, he stretched and yawned.

"Let me get dressed first and I'll be out to speak with you in a moment, Weyrleader."

H'cup looked over his shoulder at the lovely form of his weyrmate curled up under the furs beside him. She was still sleeping and had a little smile on her face as if she was reliving the events from yesterday. Sitting up on the edge of the bed, he also smiled at his own memories while he dressed and attached his leg. Standing up and stretching, he winced when the material of his clothes rubbed against some sore spots. Limping carefully, he pushed aside the partition that separated the outer weyr from their sleeping chambers to see Weyrleader R'mart waiting patiently. Glancing to his right, he noticed Tannluth opening one eye, look around the cavern, and went right back to sleep. Chrysolth never even stirred.

"What can I help you with this morning, Weyrleader?"

R'mart took a moment to assess his rider's condition. "Are you all right, H'cup?"

"I'm a little sore, but nothing that a bit of numbweed wouldn't cure."

R'mart grinned, "So, good flight?"

"Oh yeah, the best!"

R'mart nodded, then the grin faded to be replaced by a scowl. "H'cup, as much as I'd like to let you and your dragons rest after the day you had yesterday, there's a certain matter that has come to my attention that I have to clear up."

"Does this have to do with Histeth?"

"It does. J'kun claims that Tannluth attacked him and hurt him."

H'cup's eyes narrowed. "Weyrleader, Tannluth is good, but not even he can attack another dragon when his back is turned towards him! Come with me, I want to show you something."

H'cup walked across the cavern to a storage trunk to retrieve a bag of tools before he went over to where Tannluth was still dozing. He scratched his lifemate's eye ridges and smiled when he heard the dragon's deep, rumbling purr of pleasure.

"Tannluth, buddy, I hate to disturb your sleep, but I have to show the Weyrleader something and I have to climb up on your back to show it."

Tannluth stretched and yawned. He turned his head toward H'cup and gave him a lick on his cheek in greeting.

_:Good morning, H'cup. And good morning to you too, Weyrleader:_

R'mart smiled as he returned the black dragon's greetings. "Good morning to you as well, Tannluth."

Tannluth noticed the tools that H'cup carried with him. _:So, you're going to pull them out now?:_

"Yep, I think I've got everything I need."

_:Good! They're starting to itch something fierce!:_

"Well, bend down so we can climb up and I'll take care of it."

Tannluth nodded and laid down flat on the cavern floor so the two humans could climb up easier. Using some scales as handholds, H'cup and R'mart were up on his back and were at the spot where Histeth's claws were still stuck between his scales. There was a lot of dried blood around the site of the injury but H'cup had no way to tell how much of it was Tannluth's or Histeth's. Taking a cloth out of his bag, he started wiping down the hide and scales to clean off some of the mess. When the area was clean, he could see the two claws buried half their length under one of Tannluth's larger dorsal plates. There was dried blood around the claws, but it wasn't bleeding any more. Reaching into his bag, H'cup pulled out a pair of long handled grippers. Clamping onto one of the claws, he put his foot down and pulled hard. Noticing that the claw didn't budge at all, he took a breath, set himself, and tried again. The claw still didn't move and H'cup nearly fell off of Tannluth's back when he lost his grip. The only thing that saved him from a tumble was R'mart who was right behind him and was able to stop him.

"Rider H'cup, are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm all right, but we're going to have to do something different to get these claws out. They're stuck pretty good."

Tannluth turned his head back on his long neck to see what was going on._ :Anything I can do to help?:_

"Yes, as a matter of fact, you can. Try arching your back. Hopefully that will stretch out the spaces between the scales and relieve some of the pressure on those claws. Then we can get them out."

_:Okay, hold on to one of my ridges while I'm moving:_ Tannluth got up and walked to the center of the cavern where the ceiling was higher. He then arched his back as much as he could._ :Will that be enough?:_

"We'll see buddy, hold still. Weyrleader, I need you to brace me in case I lose my grip."

"I'm right behind you, H'cup."

"All right, here we go." Again, H'cup used his foot to brace himself, gripped as much of the claw as he could, and pulled hard. Still, the claw didn't budge. H'cup was about to throw his tools away in frustration, but then he had an idea. _'Since I can't muscle it out, maybe I can use some leverage?'_ Digging around in his bag, he found something that he could use as a fulcrum. Gripping the claw again and placing the larger handle of a pry bar against the claw and underneath the grippers, he slowly and steadily pushed down on the handles and noticed that the claw started to move! Re-adjusting the tool's grip on the claw, he pushed down again and the claw came out a bit more. It took three more times of using leverage with his tools but finally the claw came out completely. H'cup repeated the process with the other one and Tannluth sighed audibly in relief. H'cup then wrapped the blood-stained claws in a rag and put them down beside him. He then looked at the site of the injury and frowned.

"Shards, the scales aren't laying flat and the wound is still bleeding!"

_:Do you think a piece of claw broke off and got stuck inside?:_

H'cup opened the rag to look at the claws. They were the length of half his forearm and were as big around as three of his fingers at their base and they tapered off to a needle sharp point at the end. H'cup shuddered to think what kind of damage they could have done if they were buried as deep as they were into his own body. At the very least, he would have been severely maimed if not killed outright. To Tannluth, they were merely an irritant.

"Nope, they're intact with no broken edges. That's the good news. At least we don't have to go digging deep for something stuck inside of you. It's got to be the dried blood clotted up in the wound site that's preventing the scales from laying flat. Unfortunately, we've got to clean it out."

Tannluth grumbled and started to lay down.

"No, keep your back arched, that way I can get under the scales better." H'cup started laying his tools out and then realized he will probably be cutting away dead skin and flesh. "Do you want some numbweed before we start?"

_:No, let's just get it over with:_

"Rider H'cup, just what are you doing?"

"Weyrleader, we learned the hard way that Tannluth's scales require special care. When he was younger and shedding more frequently, one of his older scales broke off and was stuck under one of the newer scales. It became infected and caused the scale to lift away from his flesh. The only way to relieve the pressure is to cut it out but first I have to pry up the new scale to get at it. That's why I have these tools. What I'm going to do is lift the scale and clean out the dried blood so the scale can lay flat and close the wound completely."

R'mart turned to look the dragon in the eye who was still watching them "Is that painful for you Tannluth?"

_:Not really, it stings a bit, but H'cup works really fast and it's over with quickly:_

"Turn your head away buddy, it's probably best if you don't watch."

Tannluth huffed, but turned his head so that he was looking outside. H'cup took a pry bar, lifted the edge of a scale, and started scraping dried blood out of the wound with his knife. He periodically wiped the area clean to see if he got it all. As he worked, he could hear his dragon hissing and growling in discomfort. He could also hear the scraping noise of his claws on the cavern floor. It took a few minutes to clean the wound, but when H'cup removed the pry bar and wiped down the scales, he nodded when he saw that the scales were laying flat. There was a little bit of fresh blood leaking out from between the scales but the flow was very slow and stopped completely after the third time H'cup wiped down the area.

"All done, buddy. You can relax now." Tannluth sighed audibly in relief and settled down on the cavern floor. When H'cup and R'mart climbed back down, R'mart addressed both dragon and rider. "There will be no going _between_ for a sevenday until this heals completely."

"Yes, Weyrleader."

_:I understand, Weyrleader:_

R'mart nodded to both of them. He then pointed to the rag bundle that the claws were wrapped up in.

"H'cup, can I borrow those? I need them to show to J'kun."

H'cup handed the bundle to him. "Keep it, sir. Neither Tannluth or I want to keep trophies."

R'mart nodded and walked out of the weyr. H'cup followed close behind. They didn't have far to go as J'kun was waiting just outside with two other bronze riders standing beside him. H'cup realized they were there on the Weyrleader's orders to keep J'kun from interfering.

"Well R'mart, what kind of punishment have you decided for H'cup?"

R'mart blinked, "Punishment? For H'cup?"

"Yes, for ordering his dragon to attack and injure mine!"

H'cup was about to lay into the idiot for his remark when he was interrupted by laughter coming from R'mart.

"HAHAHAHA, Oh that was a good one, J'kun! Thank you, I appreciate a good laugh in the morning."

"I'm not joking, R'mart! What are you going to do to punish H'cup and his dragon?"

"Punish H'cup? I'm not going to punish him at all! However, YOU will take the night watch for the next three months."

"ME? Why am I being punished when it's MY dragon that's limping around?"

R'mart took the bundled rag and tossed it at J'kun. He caught it and opened it up. When he saw what was inside, he dropped them and backed away.

"Do you know where I found those J'kun? I witnessed H'cup pull them out of the BACK of his dragon! And don't try to say that H'cup was the one who put them there because he was barely able to get them out! That tells me that a dragon put them there. Now, according to you, Tannluth attacked Histeth and injured him. How could he do that with his back to him? And how do you explain claw marks on six other bronze dragons that participated in that flight? Let me save you some time, you can't explain it. Histeth was the aggressor here and Tannluth was merely defending himself. So, the punishment stands. Either stand three months of night watch or pack your gear and get out of the Weyr. I don't care which."

"R'mart..."

"That's Weyrleader to you, Bronze Rider! Make sure you remember it!"

J'kun stood there and stared stupidly at R'mart for a few moments. His expression turned to one of rage when he turned his head to see H'cup standing behind the Weyrleader. He was about to say something when he was interrupted by R'mart.

"Don't even think about saying ANYTHING to H'cup! It's not his fault that you're in this situation. It's your own greed and jealousy that got you into trouble. H'cup and Tannluth had nothing to do with it."

J'kun opened and closed his mouth a few times, then lowered his head and nodded. He then started walking slowly toward one of the supply caverns lining the Weyr bowl. R'mart, H'cup, and the other bronze riders watched his progress for a moment and then stood in a semi-circle to discuss what happened. Their backs were turned toward J'kun, so they never saw the move he made. Pivoting on one foot, he drew his belt knife and lunged toward H'cup's unprotected back. Fortunately for H'cup, there was another set of eyes watching the proceedings. Silently, Tannluth launched himself at the treacherous bronze rider. J'kun never saw him coming and had the breath knocked out of him when the enraged black dragon slammed into his side. His knife went flying as he spun through the air and skidded on his back for a few yards before he stopped. When his vision cleared after the hard hit, he was quickly wishing it hadn't. For standing above him with a paw on his chest was an angry, snarling Tannluth.

_:YOU **DARE** TO TRY AND ATTACK MY RIDER!:_

Histeth saw what was happening and roared in alarm as he ran to his rider's aid. Tannluth saw him coming and leaving his paw on J'kun's chest, turned his head to roar at the approaching bronze dragon.

_**:BACK OFF!:**_

All the dragons of the Weyr roared as Tannluth used his mental "voice" on the advancing bronze dragon. Histeth stopped in his tracks as if he ran headlong into a solid rock wall. He stomped his feet and shook his head while roaring in pain and frustration. No matter what he tried, he couldn't get any closer to aid his rider! J'kun could hear his cries and despite having a dragon's paw holding him down, he started hitting Tannluth's foot with his fist.

"STOP IT, LET HIM GO! YOU'RE HURTING HIM!"

_:Tell him to stay away and I'll release him:_

Despite being belligerent, J'kun truly loved his dragon and did not want to see him hurt. He told Histeth to stay back and as soon as the bronze dragon moved away, Tannluth released the mental hold he had on him. As soon as it stopped, Histeth laid down on the ground, holding his head in his forepaws and moaning piteously. Tannluth turned his head to look down at the bronze rider under his claws. His eyes were nearly _glowing_ crimson because he was so enraged!

_:I hate you so very much right now, J'kun! Because of your actions, I had to use my mental powers on another dragon and he's hurt because of it! I'm sorely tempted to end you right here, right now. The only reason why I don't is because it will kill Histeth as well and make all the other dragons of the Weyr mourn his passing:_

"You can't! Dragons can't harm humans!"

Tannluth put a little more weight down on his forepaw making J'kun groan and struggle, but released the pressure after a few seconds.

_:That was just to get your attention. You seem to be laboring under a misconception, J'kun. I am not like the other dragons of Pern and don't feel the compulsion to never harm a human:_ J'kun's eyes widened in fear. _:That's right, you are totally at my mercy so you better watch your tongue! Like I said before, I'm not going to kill you now, but if you try to attack my rider again, I may not act with such restraint:_

Tannluth lifted his paw and J'kun scrambled away. He walked a few feet away and turned to glare at the black dragon who returned his gaze with bright, whirling red eyes. J'kun then addressed the Weyrleader.

"R'mart, you heard him threaten me! Are you going to let this go unpunished?"

"I told you before Bronze Rider to not be so familiar with me! You will address me as Weyrleader! And yes, I will let this incident go unpunished. Tannluth was only defending his rider because YOU attacked him! In fact, I'm going to amend my punishments for you. Since you can't seem to control yourself, I want you out of this Weyr as soon as possible!"

J'kun blinked a few times in disbelief. "You're BANISHING me? You're kicking me out of a Weyr I've lived in for most of my life? What will I do? Where will I go?"

"I don't know and I don't care! Go to Southern with the rest of the malcontents. Go see if another Weyr will take you. Hell, you can just disappear _between_ for all I care but I want you GONE!"

J'kun staggered back a few steps at the Weyrleader's wrath then looked around at the other unsympathetic faces staring back at him. Seeing that he had no support, he walked away to tend to his injured dragon. Three days later, he was seen loading Histeth's harness with all his possessions. They launched and went _between_ once they were clear of the Weyr bowl.

They were never seen or heard from again.

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><p><em>That's it for this chapter.<em>

_**As always, thanks for reading and please leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**_


	33. Chapter 33 Housecleaning

**Chapter 33 – Housecleaning**

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><p><em>Hello again everyone. Sorry for the long wait before this chapter, but I had MAJOR computer problems over the last few months which finally concluded with my hard drive crashing (Blue Screen of Death and all that). Fortunately, I hadn't really started on writing this current chapter, so I didn't lose all that much information. <em>

**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**

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><p>When J'kun and Histeth left for parts unknown, H'cup, Vailira, and their dragons were slightly wary that there would be some kind of backlash from the loss of such an outspoken character. It turned out that their fears were mostly unfounded, J'kun really didn't have all that much influence in Telgar Weyr. The man was only a Wingsecond and was never a Wingleader. Not even his friends had all that much influence, since they were all brown and blue riders. H'cup checked around and found that none of the older bronze riders would tolerate his presence. He snorted in amusement at that, a bronze rider that demanded status because of the color of his dragon and none of the other bronze riders would give it to him. No wonder he was such a fork-head.<p>

Eight days after his departure, J'kun's former friends tried emulating his intimidation tactics by trying to boss around some of the newer blue and green riders. They got away with it for a little while with a few of the younger riders, but when they tried to bully T'yner, word about their antics quickly reached the ears of H'cup and Vailira. Both of them hated bullies and their tactics, so they decided to take action and nip this in the bud quickly. The two of them along with T'yner went to the Weyrleader's office to apprise him of the current situation. As soon as they finished giving him their statements, they were dismissed and were assured that he would take care of it.

R'mart immediately summoned the three brown riders and four blue riders who were J'kun's friends to his office. H'cup, Vailira, and T'yner decided to stay outside to see what would happen to them. They could hear bits of conversation through the curtain, but suddenly there was an unending stream of loud shouting and cursing coming from the Weyrleader's office. They couldn't make out all the words, but they could tell that the loudest of it was coming from R'mart.

"Someone's in trouble" T'yner said in a sing-song voice.

"Yep" H'cup was nodding his head with a smile on his face.

Vailira shook her head. "You two are enjoying this way too much."

"What can I say, I hate bullies" H'cup shrugged, unrepentant. "I had no choice dealing with them while growing up in my village, I had to grit my teeth and bear it. They eventually came around and changed their ways, but I still won't tolerate it when I see it happening with others."

"I agree with H'cup" T'yner chimed in beside him. "I didn't have to deal with bullies growing up like he did, but I've dealt with a few at the Smithcrafthall due to being the youngest and smallest one there. I didn't like it then and I don't like it now."

Vailira was about to voice her opinion but was interrupted by loud shouting and the curtain over the office door being thrown to the side. A very angry brown and blue rider left the office with their fists clenched at their sides. R'mart appeared in the doorway a moment later and shouted at them.

"Br'set, G'trel, get back in here! I'm not finished with the two of you yet!"

The brown rider and the bigger of the two, Br'set, as H'cup found out later, spun on his heel and shouted right back.

"Yes, we ARE done R'mart! We've had it with this Weyr! Ever since we came forward with the other Weyrs, our traditions are being chipped away a little bit at a time. I can appreciate how at first you didn't let the Weyrleaders of Benden walk all over us, but now you're letting these newer riders do exactly the same! We won't stand for it!"

"YOU won't stand for it?! Since when have YOU made the decisions for this Weyr? This is a different Pern than the one we left behind, Br'set. I tried maintaining our old traditions, but our attitudes were isolating us in the end. I'm not going to bring around sweeping changes all at once like Benden tried to do to us, but I will no longer stand in the way of those who are trying to gradually change our ways for the better." R'mart glanced to where H'cup, Vailira, and T'yner were standing and winked at them. "Now, I understand that the two of you were friends with J'kun so I'm going to give the both of you the same choice that I gave him. Either stand two months of night watch and CHANGE YOUR ATTITUDE TOWARD OTHERS, or leave and join the malcontents in Southern. The choice is yours."

Br'set glared at the Weyrleader, opening and closing his fists. H'cup thought that he was going to attack, but he suddenly spun on his heel and stalked across the bowl to his own weyr. G'trel looked at his retreating back for a moment, looked back at R'mart, then sighed and went to his own weyr. R'mart watched them go then slumped his shoulders as he released the tension in them and blew out a breath in frustration. He then returned to his office to deal with the rest of the troublemakers.

The other brown and blue riders were more cooperative, accepting their punishments and promising to change their ways. However, Br'set and G'trel did not. So after packing everything they owned, they mounted their dragons, flew up over the Star Stones, and disappeared from Telgar Weyr forever.

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><p><em>Short chapter I know, but I had to write something to get back into the groove of writing after such a long downtime. Since I got a new computer I shouldn't be having any problems with it, so the only problems I can foresee is having a bit of a writer's block. Hopefully,, I can get up the next chapter before it strikes again!<em>

**As always, thanks for reading and please leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**


	34. Chapter 34 A New Record

**Chapter 34 – A New Record**

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><p><em>Hello again everyone. Time for another chapter.<em>

**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**

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><p>Two months after the departure of Br'set and G'trel, H'cup and Vailira were on the edge of deciding they wanted them to come back to Telgar. To them it seemed that dealing with bigoted idiots was MUCH easier than dealing with a moody, temperamental, and very pregnant queen dragon!<p>

Chrysolth constantly complained, whether it was that her wings and back were tired after flying Threadfall, or that there wasn't enough food laid out for her to eat, or that her back hurt from all the eggs she was carrying it was always nag, nag, nag. Vailira was attending her constantly, but Chrysolth was taking up any spare minute she had and was so demanding that she needed help. Five girls from the lower caverns were brought to her weyr to help spread oil over the queen's tightly stretched belly hide, to scratch where she itched, to cater to her needs, and to bring her food whenever she didn't feel like getting up and acquiring it herself.

Speaking of food, not only did she consume massive quantities of it, she would also request, no...she would make DEMANDS of the strangest things to eat. Her demands would range from the mundane, to the difficult to acquire, to the unusual, and finally to the downright disgusting. The mundane was easy to handle, those were things readily available in the Weyr. One day she wanted nothing but wherries for her meal, so half a dozen large ones were rounded up and brought before her. The herdmaster didn't think she would eat them all and was fairly surprised when she did. Her unusual request happened on two occasions when she asked for nothing but bones to eat. Fortunately the weyr had a constant supply of it so when a wagonload of fresh bones was brought before her, she settled down and munched away happily. Several times she demanded fresh fish, which was a difficult item to acquire because the Weyr was always supplied with dried fish. It took a bit of time and effort to acquire enough fresh fish in quantities large enough to satisfy the appetite of a queen dragon, so H'cup, T'yner, and half a dozen blue and green riders flew to the sea holds along the southern coast of the continent to get the freshest available. What disturbed and disgusted Vailira the most was when Chrysolth asked for the internal organs of the animals slaughtered for their meat. When buckets of steaming entrails were set in front of her and the dragon happily slurped them up, Vailira had to turn away and fight to keep down her last meal.

As for how big she was becoming, she was getting ENORMOUS! Ten days into the third month after her mating flight Chrysolth quit bothering to try flying anymore and so she took up residence in the hatching cavern. The heat from the sands seemed to relax the hide on her stretched belly and soothe her aching back muscles. Vailira walked with her into the cavern and smiled when Chrysolth laid down on the warm sand and audibly purred in relief.

"Feeling better love?"

_:Yes, much better. I'm sorry that I've been giving you and everyone that is helping such a hard time:_

"Don't you worry about that, I'm sure most everyone's been happy to help. I've heard from the dragonhealer that he's never seen a queen get quite as large as you are right now. You're probably going to break the record for the largest clutch in Telgar's history and that's a lot of eggs to carry around so you're entitled to be a little bit moody. How long do you think it will be before you start laying them?"

Chrysolth turned her head so that she could look back at her swollen abdomen. _:I'm not sure, one or two more sevendays at the most. They're almost ready, just not yet:_

As the days passed, speculation about Chrysolth's clutch ran wild throughout the Weyr. 'How many eggs will she lay?' 'When will she begin laying them?' 'How many of each color dragon will there be?' 'How different will the dragons be since Tannluth is their sire?' Even as people were asking these questions, many wagers were being placed concerning those questions.

It was exactly fourteen days later when Chrysolth sent a call for Vailira to come to the hatching cavern. She jumped up and ran out of her weyr with H'cup following right behind her. Other people in the Weyr saw them running and decided to follow as well. Vailira ran into the cavern and skidded to a stop at the edge of the sands just as Chrysolth arched her back and laid a third egg, which was large and mottled with a distinctive bronze tint. Laying in the sand close by were two more eggs, one was pale green and the other was light brown. Even though they were bonded, Vailira knew of the protective instincts that nesting dragons had so she made sure that Chrysolth saw her before approaching slowly.

"Oh Chrysolth, love, they're beautiful! And you laid a bronze egg too! I'm so proud of you!"

_:Thank you, but I'm sure there will be quite a few others to join these three: _Chrysolth looked over Vailira's shoulder to where H'cup was waiting at the edge of the sands_. :You can tell H'cup that he can come closer if he wants to see them better:_

Vailira turned around to smile at H'cup and to beckon him closer. Even though Chrysolth rarely spoke directly to H'cup, she always referred to him by name. If she was talking about any other rider, she would always use the dragon's name and never the rider's. The fact that Chrysolth was so at ease with her weyrmate made Vailira's smile even wider. However, her smile disappeared and H'cup stopped in his tracks when Chrysolth lunged to her feet growling and hissing. Her red, whirling eyes were fixed on the cavern's entrance.

"Chrysolth, sweetie, what is it? What's wrong?"

_:They're coming:_

"They're coming? Who's coming?"

_:Everyone:_

As soon as the words were spoken, it seemed the entirety of the Weyr's inhabitants poured through the cavern's entrance. They stopped in surprise and just a bit of fear when they came face to snout with a snarling and extremely pissed-off queen dragon. What surprised everyone was when an equally pissed-off queenrider stomped toward the group and let everyone know what was on her mind and at the highest volume possible.

"Get out of here, you IDIOTS! Have all your brains gone _between_? This is Chrysolth's first clutch, numbwits! Coming in here like a mob has triggered her instincts to protect her eggs! If you give me some time to calm Chrysolth down a little bit MAYBE later on I'll allow you to come in a few at a time and QUIETLY take a look. Until then, GET OUT!"

Most everyone turned and left the cavern as soon as Vailira finished speaking. The few who stubbornly remained quickly fled when Chrysolth punctuated Vailira's orders by roaring loudly. Within seconds, Vailira and H'cup were the only humans remaining in the cavern. Vailira gestured for Chrysolth to lower her head and as soon as she did, Vailira started scratching her eye ridges. The whirling in Chrysolth's eyes went away almost immediately as the queen purred in blissful pleasure.

"I'm so sorry they upset you, dear heart."

_:I'm the one who's sorry for reacting like I did. It's just that when I saw everyone coming in the cavern suddenly, my instincts were screaming at me to PROTECT MY EGGS! I couldn't help myself:_

"Well, I'm going to make sure that no one will come into the cavern to disturb you from now on!"

H'cup raised an eyebrow at her last remark. "Umm, Vailira, you may want to amend that last statement. If no one can come into the cavern, how are the future dragonrider candidates going to Impress? Not only that, they will need to get close to the eggs a few sevendays before hatching so the unhatched dragons can feel their presence. So, you see, you can't just keep everyone out."

Vailira blinked before responding. "Well, of course I'll allow people and the candidates for Impression to come into the cavern, just not right now. Chrysolth needs peace and quiet so she could finish laying her eggs without undue stress. Then we could let small groups come in so they could view them."

H'cup nodded, thinking this was a good enough compromise. It created a peaceful environment so Chrysolth could lay her eggs and allowed her to get used to different people coming into close proximity to her clutch.

Chrysolth spent the rest of the day laying her eggs, passing one or two at a time every quarter candlemark or so. After every fifth egg, she would ask for and receive a barrel full of water and drink the entire container. The Weyr's dragonhealer, a blue rider named Z'tan who came by to check on the proceedings, told Vailira and H'cup that it was perfectly normal for a clutching queen to drink so much water because it helped ease the passage of the eggs. Around the time the thirtieth egg was laid Chrysolth complained of soreness, saying that pushing the eggs out was becoming uncomfortable. Vailira sent a call out for Z'tan who returned to the cavern with a bucket of oil and a clean, unused long-handled mop. Informing Vailira to stay by Chrysolth's head to keep her calm, he crawled under her hindquarters with the mop and bucket. Chrysolth, for her part, stayed perfectly still but hissed in surprise at first and then sighed in relief as the oil Z'tan applied to her sore areas eased her discomfort. She was still laying eggs well into the night and at midnight she tiredly told Vailira that she was finished and immediately went to sleep. Vailira looked out over the warm sands and started counting. When she reached fifty seven, she realized that this was the highest amount of eggs ever laid by a Telgar queen.

"_Fifty seven! By Faranth, it's no wonder you're exhausted!" _Vailira thought to herself. "_Oh Chrysolth, I'm so very proud of you! That must have taken a lot out of you. Sleep well, my wonderful queen."_

Over the following days, Vailira and H'cup would allow small groups into the cavern to view the eggs. At the same time, R'mart ordered the Weyr's search dragons to go out and begin finding suitable candidates. Surprisingly, Tannluth requested to be one of those search dragons. With the necessity of finding so many candidates, R'mart appreciated the extra help and granted his request. Since so many candidates were needed for such a large clutch, the Weyrleaders sought permission from Pern's other Weyrs to conduct search in their territories so that their search dragons can find more candidates. All but Southern agreed.

Most of the dragons going on Search would visit the main Holds and the smaller cotholds in groups of three or four. Even though Tannluth and H'cup joined these groups occasionally, more often than not they set out on their own. Tannluth would fly around the countryside, oftentimes far away from the large settlements. He would then fly down to an isolated farmhold, or stop a passing caravan, or wait by a road for groups of people to walk by. During all these occasions, H'cup had no idea of just what Tannluth was looking for in a potential candidate, but in every instance they would find one or two youngsters that were suitable and were willing to come with them. By the time Tannluth and the other dragons finished Search nearly a month later, they had nearly a hundred candidates for Impression.

"Do you think this will be enough candidates?" H'cup asked Tannluth.

_:I'm sure it will be. I'm fairly certain that all the ones that I chose will Impress:_

H'cup could only nod, thinking back to Chrysolth's hatching and how Tannluth was the only one who gave Vailira a chance at Impressing the queen.

When the candidates were taken back to Telgar, they were settled into their barracks and were given lessons on what they were expected to do as dragonriders if they did Impress. One of the first things they learned was how to care for a dragon's hide because they would be scrubbing and oiling their own dragons quite often until they were fully grown. Taking mops, buckets of oil, scrub brushes, and soapsand they followed M'dar over to the lake where twenty seven young dragons were waiting. M'dar stood facing the group with his hands on his hips.

"Well? What are you waiting for? Grab some scrub brushes and soapsand and start in! No more than five to a dragon. Make sure you get every part of the dragons clean. And I mean EVERYWHERE! Believe me, you're going to get plenty of practice scrubbing and oiling a dragon so I'm going to be checking all of you to make sure you're doing it right!"

The candidates had other lessons on the care of young dragons and how things were done around the Weyr. It was not all drudgery, because the high point of their time in the candidate barracks was when they were told that they would be taken into the hatching cavern to view the eggs. At least they thought so until they saw the hissing and snarling queen standing protectively over her brood, wings spread out to make her already impressive size look more massive and intimidating. A good number of candidates screamed and ran away, a few squeaked and fainted on the spot, but the majority of them stood their ground and didn't move. Vailira, H'cup, M'dar, and his assistants were most impressed with this group. After splitting them up into smaller groups which seemed to satisfy Chrysolth, they were allowed to walk closer to the eggs. When all the groups had a chance to see the eggs, M'dar asked the ones that fainted or ran away if they wanted a chance as well. Surprisingly, most of them did but they kept a careful eye on Chrysolth who was watching them warily from her perch on the edge of the sands. The few that didn't return decided that being a dragonrider wasn't the life for them and asked to leave.

A month and a half after Chrysolth laid her eggs, preparations were underway around Telgar Weyr for the hatching and the massive feast to follow. Provisions were flown in from all over Pern, extra cooks and kitchen help were hired, and extra furniture was borrowed from other Weyrs and Holds to accommodate what may be the largest group of guests that the Weyr had ever seen. Shelters were set up on the plain outside the Weyr and invitations were sent out to dignitaries who would want to witness this momentous occasion. The preparations were nearly complete when early one morning the dragons started humming.

The Weyr nearly exploded with activity! Fire lizards were sent out with messages, dragons and riders left to collect family and guests, the workers and cooks were preparing meals for the hatching feast, and the candidates were in a mad scramble to get themselves ready. As the first of the guests arrived, Vailira, Bedella, and the other Queenriders met them outside the hatching cavern and asked them to wait until just before the candidates came in and to enter quietly. A few of the higher ranking Lords started making a fuss about her request, but when told that they will be taken back to their Holds if they didn't behave they decided to hold their tongue. When all the candidates were ready, the Queenriders led the guests in small groups to the viewing stands. Vailira was standing next to Chrysolth, trying to calm the agitated queen. Vailira was mentally berating herself for not getting Chrysolth acclimatized to large groups of people because she has never allowed such a large group to come into the hatching cavern until now.

Once the guests were settled, M'dar led the group of white-robed candidates into the cavern. When the first of them stepped onto the edge of the sands, Chrysolth had decided she's had enough of all these people getting close to her eggs. In a spray of sand, she leaped from her perch and landed in the sand between her eggs and the massed candidates. More than a few were startled by Chrysolth's impressive display and scrambled to put some distance between themselves and the irritated queen. Vailira ran across the sands to slap her on her shoulder to get her attention.

"CHRYSOLTH! What in Faranth's name do you think you're doing?"

_:They want to take my eggs away! I WON'T LET THEM!:_

Vailira's jaw dropped open in shock! Where did this line of thinking come from? Then it hit her, this is Chrysolth's first clutch. Her protective instincts are more than likely overwhelming her and Vailira didn't help matters by keeping the visiting groups small and helping her get used to larger crowds. She knew that with a clutch this size there would be a lot of people here for the hatching, but she thought Chrysolth could handle it. Apparently, she thought wrong.

"Chrysolth, you've been a wonderful mother and have taken great care of your eggs, but these candidates aren't here for the eggs. They just want to Impress the dragons that hatch out of them. To do that, they have to get close to the eggs so you have to let them by."

Chrysolth stood still, thinking of her words for a moment. Then she shook her head and glared at the crowd gathered around the cavern.

_:No. NO! It's a trick! It's all a trick to make me leave my lovely eggs alone! Well, I won't do it!:_

Vailira started to say something else to try and talk some sense into her stubborn queen, but was interrupted by an angry roar from Tannluth.

_:ENOUGH! Chrysolth, stop being silly and move aside!:_

_:NO! You can't ask me to do that! They want to take my eggs away!:_

_:They don't want the eggs, they just want the dragons that will hatch from them:_ Chrysolth looked around at her eggs which were rocking in the sand. Tannluth felt that her resolve was weakening and so he tried a different tactic. _:Yes, they're about to hatch. Young dragons will be coming out of those eggs and what is the first thing they will want to do?:_

Chrysolth shuffled in the sand. _:Impress:_

_:That's right, Impress. And what happens when young dragons can't find their lifemates and Impress?:_

Chrysolth's eyes whirled in sadness and distress. _:They die:_

_:Yes, that's right, they die. Right now, you're keeping the humans the young hatchlings would choose as a lifemate away from them. If they can't get to them, they WILL die and YOU will be the cause of that! Are you sure you want that responsibility?:_

Chrysolth recoiled in horror. She just wanted to protect her eggs! In no way did she want to be the cause of so much death! She shook her head side to side, her rational mind at war with her instincts. Tannluth's voice broke through her inner conflict.

_:Chrysolth, like Vailira said, you've been a wonderful mother and an excellent protector, but it's time to stand aside and let others protect the young ones. Do it, do it now. I promise you that no harm will come to them:_

Chrysolth's eyes were still whirling, but she eased her aggressive stance and walked back to her perch. She still eyed the candidates warily, but allowed them onto the sands and space themselves out amongst the eggs. The candidates, for their part, moved slowly and steadily, keeping their eyes on the overprotective queen and trying not to do anything that would irritate her further. The candidates settled down right on time, because just as the last one took his place, a loud '_CRACK_' was heard across the hatching sands. All the candidates turned to look where it was coming from and the spectators leaned forward in their seats in anticipation. Some smaller cracks were heard along with tapping noises coming from other eggs when suddenly the large egg that cracked open first split right down the middle ejecting a bronze mass. The audience _oohed_ and applauded, a bronze dragon hatching first was a very good sign. The little dragon righted itself and shook his head to shed the sand that was stuck to his hide. Then he lifted his head and looked around. His gaze passed over several hopeful faces before he made a sound and took off running. He stopped at the feet of a tall boy with short black hair and looked into his eyes. The boy nearly staggered back at the powerful emotions he was feeling coming from the dragon.

"Me? You want..._me_?"

The young bronze made a noise in his throat and took a step back, his eyes whirling red in distress. The boy knelt down and hugged him around his chest to comfort the young dragon.

"No, I'm not rejecting you, Esrith. It's just a shock that you would choose me, of all people. Yes, I will stay with you. Now, let's go see about getting you some food."

The audience applauded enthusiastically at the first Impression. They then _oohed_ and _ahhed_ as the pair walked by the stands and were able to get a better look at the young dragon for the first time. Everyone could see that he was definitely a bronze dragon, but shared quite a few features of his sire. For one, he didn't have the headknobs that adorned the heads of 'normal' dragons. Instead, he had the long earlobes that his father displayed. Esrith also showed the beginnings of armored scales, although they didn't cover as much of his body and were the same color as the rest of his hide. His wings were larger than other bronze dragons his age, but he didn't have Tannluth's tail fins. Only time would tell if he had the ability to use blastrock when flying against Thread. When the pair disappeared around the corner, everyone's attention returned to the unhatched eggs. A few minutes later, several more cracked open at once and more young dragons were crawling around on the sands, crying for their lifemates. It took less than a minute before cries of new lifelong unions rang out in the cavern.

"He said his name is Brisinth!"

"Oh yes, Aliath, we'll get you fed right away!"

"She says her name is Tristh, she's starving!"

After each Impression, certain sections of the audience would yell and cheer while the rest applauded politely. It took most of that morning for the rest of the dragons to hatch and when the last one Impressed, a blue dragon named Loarth, the spectators, as well as Vailira and H'cup, sighed in relief. The Weyr's dragon population had increased by nine bronze, twenty one brown, sixteen blue, and eleven green dragons. There were a few comments about the strange proportion of colors, but most were discussing how different all the dragons looked since every one of them had the same features as Esrith.

However, their riders were unaware about the controversy surrounding them and didn't care one single bit about the appearance of their dragons, for they were now DRAGONRIDERS!

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><p><em>That's it for this chapter. I originally planned on this being the last chapter, but at 4000 words and STILL hadn't finished the epilog so I decided to split it up. It's strange how this story brings out ideas and directions to go toward. It's like a hydra, just when I've taken care of one idea, two more pop up to take its place.<em>

_Someone may point out that an egg laying female is called gravid instead of pregnant. For the context of this story, pregnant sounds better. Deal with it._

**As always, thanks for reading and please leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**


	35. Chapter 35 Begining and ending of an era

**Chapter 35 – Beginning and ending of an era**

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><p><em>Hello again everyone. This is it, the final chapter. It's been a lot of fun writing this, but this is kind of where I wanted this story to go and I wanted to move on to new ideas. Thank you to each and every one of you who has visited, read, and reviewed this story.<em>

_Now, to all my regular readers, please excuse me while I address an idiot reviewer._

_**BEGIN RANT...**_

_Matt, if you are reading this, then YOU are the one who's an imbecile! If you bothered to read further than chapter two, you would have seen that I brought Toothless back to life. Not only are you an imbecile, you are also a coward in that you have disabled messaging. Typical, take a cheap shot at an author in the reviews and then run away. COWARD!_

_**RANT OVER.**_

_Ahhh, I feel so much better now._

**All characters (not including my own) are property of Dreamworks Animation and Anne McCaffrey.**

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><p><strong>Nine turns later...<strong>

H'cup sat in his seat looking out over the sands and the thirty eight eggs that were rocking gently. His eyes turned to where Chrysolth was watching the proceedings from her perch with Vailira standing next to her head rubbing her eye ridges and talking to her. The queen's eyes were yellow and the colors weren't whirling, which meant that she was relaxed but concerned and alert. _"Her attitude right now is very different from when she laid her first clutch, thank Faranth"_ H'cup thought with some amusement.

Thinking about Chrysolth's changed attitude, H'cup's thoughts flashed back to her first clutch and how different those dragons really were compared to other dragons of Pern. When the young dragons started growing and shedding their first protective scales, he was there to offer advice to the weyrling trainees. He showed up to help with the classes so often that M'dar officially appointed him Assistant Weyrlingmaster. Both he and M'dar found that these dragons were a good bit stronger and quite a bit smarter than "normal" dragons, so they were able to accelerate the learning curve a bit more. They were flying earlier than other classes and learned how to go _between_ without any mishaps.

The thing that everyone wanted to know was if the new dragons could use blastrock when flying against Thread. All the new dragons could breathe flame with firestone, but only the bronze and brown dragons could use the blastrock. When a blue dragon tried chewing some blastrock, he almost died from the gasses overextending his second stomach. It took the efforts of several dragonhealers to save his life and after that incident, no blue or green dragon ever tried it again. Even though the bronze and brown dragons had the ability to safely use blastrock, the resulting explosions were about half the power and not as impressive as Tannluth's.

The other Weyrs had heard rumors about dragons that could use blastrock against Thread, first about Tannluth and now about these new hybrids. Representatives from all of Pern's major Weyrs except Southern started visiting Telgar during Threadfall to observe the dragons using their unique abilities first hand. Needless to say, they were VERY impressed. So impressed in fact, they pulled out all the stops in trying to get the bronze and brown riders to transfer to their Weyrs as soon as possible. Fortunately, the riders knew ahead of time that they might be getting transferred sometime in their future. Vailira, H'cup, and even Tannluth told each of them shortly after they Impressed that it would be in Pern's best interests to try and improve the next generation of dragons. They even included the brown riders because there was a good chance that their dragons were strong enough to catch a queen during her flight. No one knew exactly how many generations the improvements would last, but they wanted to spread it out as much as they could and for as long as possible. The riders resisted at first, saying that they didn't want to leave their families behind, but when it was pointed out to them that they had a DRAGON and could be anywhere on Pern in eight heartbeats, almost all of them acquiesced. That set a pattern for Chrysolth's future clutches, most of the bronze and brown dragons would be transferred to other Weyrs on Pern with a few remaining in Telgar. These dragons would be the foundation of a new type of Thread-fighting wing, the Pathfinders. The enhanced dragons would fly ahead of the formations, burning away huge chunks of Thread with their exploding fireballs and blaze a path for the other dragons to fly in and take care of the remnants. Having more dragons that could blast away huge holes in the curtains of falling Thread greatly reduced the danger involved in fighting it and with more and more riders asking for protective armor, injuries were reduced and fatalities became rare.

H'cup's thoughts then turned toward the Armorcraft and decided that leaving Jencis in charge was a very good decision. A few turns after he took over running the Armorcrafthall, he was experimenting with natural materials and woven mats of fibers set in resin. It took quite a few tries and failures, but he finally found a formula that worked. When soaked into the fiber mats and left to harden, it would solidify into something strong, lightweight, and slightly flexible. The beauty of the new material was that it was also resistant to Thread and could be formed into any shape at all. When they finished testing it and every test successfully repelled Thread, orders for the new armor came in from all over Pern. The invention of the new resin-based armor was worthy enough to confirm Jencis as an Armormaster. H'cup still held the same rank, but turned over the running of the Armorcrafthall completely over to Jencis. His other duties at the Weyr kept him much too busy.

Not everything that happened during that time was all good. Tragedy struck the Weyr five turns ago when an epidemic of flu ran rampant through the Weyr. Many people were sick for a while and there were even a few deaths, but the one that hurt and grieved the Weyr the most was when Bedella succumbed to the illness. The dragons were miserable for days when Solth went _between_ forever, but the person who was affected more than anyone else by her death was R'mart. Even though he didn't see eye-to-eye with her on a number of occasions and had more than a number of fights, he actually loved her. He was inconsolable and after nearly a month of mourning, announced that he was stepping down as Weyrleader.

It is a well-established tradition on Pern that when a dragon catches the senior queen on a mating flight, that dragon's rider becomes Weyrleader. However, if something happens to the queen and no senior is available, the queen that rises first will be senior and the rider of the dragon that catches her will be Weyrleader. Currently, there were two queens close to rising, Rennsith and Chrysolth. Rennsith's rider Falina and her weyrmate B'zon had been in Telgar longer than H'cup and although B'zon would have been an excellent Weyrleader, the majority of the dragons and riders of the Weyr wanted H'cup in that position. The desires of the Weyr caused Chrysolth to go into her mating cycle first, so two sevendays after R'mart announced he was stepping down, she roared her challenge to the gathered bronzes and single black and took off. The other bronzes of the Weyr took off after her, but theirs was only a token effort. In all the turns after her first flight, no other dragon other than Tannluth had ever come close to catching her. After a long and satisfying chase, Tannluth locked talons with his mate which made H'cup Telgar Weyr's newest...

"Weyrleader? Um, excuse me, Weyrleader H'cup? Is everything all right?"

"Hm?" H'cup blinked to clear his mind of the memories then focused on what was happening around him. Mastersmith Fandarel was sitting on his left with a concerned look on his face "Yes, everything is all right, Mastersmith. I was just reminiscing."

The big smith laughed. "Well, nothing wrong with that, but you may want to pay attention because the eggs are really moving around now and some may be cracking soon."

H'cup felt a small hand gripping his tightly and looked down at the red-haired boy at his right side. When Vailira became pregnant with Hogun, they both decided to go against convention and raise him themselves. That was six turns ago and they have never regretted it. However, they felt that hatchings were fairly intense events and waited until he was a bit older before attending one. Since this was his first, he was a little bit scared.

"Dad, is it usually like this? I've heard the dragons humming before, but it was never this loud!"

"That's because you've never been inside the hatching cavern before, Hogun. The dragons are humming because they're welcoming the young ones into the world. It may seem a little scary when the dragons come out of their shells because they are clumsy and could hurt someone by accident, but the candidates know what to do. Now be a good boy and watch quietly. If you're scared, just squeeze my hand. I'm not going anywhere." He then smiled at his nervous son who brightened considerably and smiled back.

H'cup turned his attention to the sands and to the eggs that were really moving around. Heimdall, who previously was sitting still on his shoulder and humming like the rest of the dragons, was now running from one shoulder to another chirping excitedly. H'cup rubbed his head to calm the hyperactive lizard when suddenly there were multiple snapping sounds as several eggs cracked at once. Only one dragon emerged from the cracked eggs, a brown one, who walked unsteadily toward the candidates and bumped into the legs of a blond haired round-faced boy.

"He said his name is Seechinth!"

A section of the audience behind H'cup whooped and hollered for the newly Impressed pair as they were led off the sands. Everyone's attention returned to the other cracked eggs as their occupants regained their strength and struggled free of their remnants. They then looked around at the candidates and found their lifemates. Other eggs were cracking, but everyone's attention turned to an egg perched on a raised area of the sands when it cracked and opened as well. The baby queen shook free of the remaining shell fragments and looked around. She walked by several girls not seeing what she was looking for and then suddenly lunged forward with a cry of joy. A young woman with blond hair ran forward and fell on her knees in front of the dragon. Holding her head, she looked into her eyes and was bonded forever with the new queen.

"Yes, Aelinth. I am yours and you are mine, forever. Now let's take care of that empty place you call a stomach!"

As the entire crowd went to its feet cheering for the new queenrider, H'cup flicked his eyes up to the ledge where Tannluth was sitting. The black dragon hummed contentedly and winked a blue eye at his rider. His record so far as a search dragon has been impeccable. Every candidate he has searched had Impressed exclusively either bronze or brown, but this was the first time he searched for a queen candidate. He picked only one, Cesilee, the girl he rescued from the gorge all those turns ago. H'cup didn't think she stood a chance at the queen, but it turned out that Tannluth was right in saying that she was the one. The crowed _oohed_ and _ahhed_ at the queen, whose hide was colored a light gold but had scales that looked like bits of the polished metal. H'cup knew that the scales wouldn't retain their luster when they hardened, but it sure made Aelinth look really beautiful right now.

When the last dragon hatched and the newly Impressed pair were led off the sands, the other candidates were led back to their barracks and the audience left to attend the hatching feast. H'cup started to lift Hogun to his hip, but Hogun insisted that he "was a big boy now" and wanted to walk. Taking his small hand in his own, he led him down the stands to meet Vailira at the opening of the cavern. Greeting his weyrmate with a quick kiss on the lips, he looked into her eyes for a moment and smiled when she smiled back at him. He then put his arm around her shoulders and walked with her and their son to the hatching feast with the sound of bugling dragons reverberating off the walls of the Weyr.

He could definitely get used to this.

o0o0o0o

_**This is Pern.**_

_**It's a lovely little planet located about 200 light years from Earth. It orbits a star named Rubkat and is smack dab in the middle of the Saggitarius sector.**_

_**We've got farming, fishing, and lots of wide open spaces.**_

_**The only problem is the pests.**_

_**You see, there's an organism that falls from the sky called Thread that eats up anything organic.**_

_**It almost wiped out the first colonists, but did they leave? Nope, they had stubbornness issues.**_

_**They were pretty resourceful. Using what technology they brought with them, they modified a local lifeform into something that could meet the threat in the sky.**_

_**Now, instead of crawling into a hole or just leaving, we have something to fight back. We now have...**_

_**DRAGONS!**_

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><p><em>Well, there it is, my inspiration for this story. The beginning of HTTYD starts out with Hiccup saying "This is Berk". My premise for this story has him starting out saying the same thing, but has him ending it with "This is Pern". Everything else kind of evolved from there.<em>

_This is the last chapter of this story and right now I have no plans for a sequel or an offshoot. I won't say that it will never happen because I might be inspired by something in the future._

_I would like to thank each and every one of you that has read and reviewed this story. I also want to thank those who have given me inspiration and guidance as this story progressed. Again, thank you everyone._

**As always, thanks for reading and please leave a review. Reviews make Tannluth, Heimdall, H'cup, Chrysolth, Vailira, (and me) very happy!**


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